Konoha Chronicles: Sunrise
by Scorpio-Rat
Summary: On December 27th, a pair of twins were born. They were seperated for their own safety, never to know of each other. Almost 13 years later, they cross paths once again. But can Konoha handle both the Tiger and Dragon? Divergent AU involving the Hyuga Clan origins. ABOUT TO BE HEAVILY EDITED.
1. A Clan Cursed By Fate

Chapter 1 (Prologue): A Clan Cursed By Fate

December 27th on a snowy winter night, a pair of twins was born, one a boy and one a girl. The large clan they belonged to was one of the oldest and most respected in their village. The parents were very happy, but they were also sad, for the father was the head of their clan and his eldest child was destined to succeed him. The other child would become a slave in all but name.

"So the boy will be my heir, as he was born first," The father said.

"And the girl is slated to protect and serve him until the day she dies," The mother pointed out, holding back tears. She had a habit of blaming herself whenever something went wrong, and now was no different. The guilt of becoming pregnant with twins had been eating away at her from the inside. The father placed a gentle hand on her shoulder in an attempt to console.

"Sora, this is not your fault," He stated firmly. "There was nothing you could have done to change this. It is the clan's law and has been for many years." Oh, but how he wished it didn't exist! This same law had tortured both him and his seconds-younger brother even to this day, and here it was again, about to ruin another generation's life. It frustrated him to know that even as the clan's leader he could still do nothing to stop it. Sora watched the newborn children, further saddened by how oblivious they were about their inherited destinies. The parents had yet to pick out names because they wanted to get to know the twins more before doing so. At the moment, they were sleeping in the crib. The boy shifted slightly, causing the light to reflect off of his cheek and allowing Sora to see something she had somehow missed before.

"Hiashi, there's some sort of birthmark on his face!" She said, carefully lifting the boy for the father to see. Hiashi stared at his son's face and his eyes widened in disbelief. Almost invisible on his pale skin were 3 green marks-2 slightly curved triangles starting at his jaw line pointing upwards and a rhombus-like shape across the bridge of his nose.

"The boy is marked!" He exclaimed.

"Correct," A third voice chimed in. Sora turned at the sudden intrusion. A cloaked figure of a young man stood in the doorway. He walked further into the lit room, throwing his features into sharp relief. The man's hair was jet-black and unkept. His eyes were a pale pearl color and lacked visible pupils. He had a 5 o'clock shadow and tattoos identical to the baby boy's strange markings.

"I assume that you are here to take him with you," Hiashi said to the cloaked man in a neutral tone.

"Correct again. He and the girl walk a different path from the rest of their clansmen. It is my duty to raise him." The cloaked man stepped forward. "He will return to the village after he becomes a fully trained apprentice ninja, a genin. His sister will become heir in his place. Neither of the twins shall know of each other's existence. No one outside of this room other than the Village Champion will know of his birth. If anyone asks of his disappearance, tell them he died shortly after he was born. It is imperative that the girl stay unaware of her brother until he comes back from him training." He walked towards Sora and the twins. "I advise that you name him before I leave with him." He smiled. "I need to call him by something other than Boy." She closed her eyes I thought for a moment before answering.

"His name is…Ryuyoshi." The cloaked man smiled again, as if amused by her choice.

"It's fitting, but," The man held out his arms. "Way too long for me. I'm gonna call him Ryu. It's much easier to remember for the both of us." She handed him Ryu, startling his sister awake, and he made his way back to the door. The man placed Ryu over his shoulder, causing the baby to sluggishly open his eyes and look back at his mother and sister for the last time.

"Saiko, wait!" He turned around. "Make sure he comes back," The mother pleaded. Saiko smirked, somehow washing away all of her doubts.

"Of course he will. Well then….see you later…" And with that, Saiko and Ryu stepped outside and disappeared into the darkness. As soon as the door closed, the girl started bawling. Sora picked her up and gently rocked her back to calmness. Hiashi silently watched them, thinking about how his daughter was now their only child. She was their ray of light, their sunny place. A name for her came to him in a sudden flash of insight.

"Hinata," he said in a whisper that still managed to break the fragile quiet. Sora looked up.

"What did you say?"

"We should name her Hinata," He repeated. She smiled for the fist time that night.

"Hinata Hyuga it is then."


	2. Ryu's Return

Chapter 2: Ryu's Return

12 ½ years later in the Land of Fire, in the forest outside of a town founded by ninja-known as the Village Hidden in the Leaves or Konohagakure- a boy and girl moved through the trees at a breakneck pace. They were two Konoha geninreturningfrom a mission.

The boy had dirty blonde hair, sea-blue eyes, and three marks similar to a fox's whiskers on each cheek. He wore an orange-and-blue jacket with a red spiral on the back, orange cuffed jeans, and a metal plated headband with a leaf symbol carved into it.

The girl had short, light pink hair that was held off her slightly large forehead by an identical headband, and bright green eyes. She wore a red dress with a pair of blue skin-tight shorts for modesty.

"Naruto," The girl yelled ahead of her. "Slow down! Why are you in such a rush to get back home anyway?"

"I'm starving, Sakura!" Naruto yelled back. "The second we get there, I'm going to the ramen shop." Sakura glared at him from behind.

"Is food all you ever think about? We need to report our mission to Lady Hokage first! I mean, she is the leader of our village, and not to mention our boss. Are you trying to get fired?" Naruto rolled his eyes.

"Granny Tsunade wouldn't fire me. I'm the best of the best!"

"If you keep calling her granny, she will! And what do you mean, 'The best of the best'? You haven't been on a solo mission since the day we graduated school!"

"Yeah, yeah…" As the two sped through the trees, they heard the distinctive sound of battle. Naruto immediately turned towards the noise.

"I'm gonna see what's going on over there," He murmured, changing direction to head towards the commotion.

"Wait-Where do you think you're-?" Sakura sighed and followed in his tracks. "Just slow down, okay?" She yelled after him.

The two ninja came to a clearing in the woods where four figures were standing. The tallest one was at least six feet tall, wearing a large collared black cloak with a pattern of red clouds. The man's skin was aqua-blue and his short, spiked hair was dark blue. He had gills on his cheeks, beady eyes, and teeth like a shark. There was a mysterious long sword-shaped object wrapped in bandages strapped to his back. Naruto instantly recognized him.

"That's Kisame Hoshigaki! He's a rouge ninja from the Village Hidden in the Mist."

"Kirigakure?_"_ Sakura asked. "How do you know about that creepy-looking freak anyway?"

"He and his partner tried to kill me in Tanzaku Town."

"…I don't really want to know, do I?" Naruto's attention shifted onto the others

"Who are those three?" He asked Sakura.

"I have no clue," She answered. "All of them have Konoha headbands, but that guy does look familiar." She pointed out the boy closest to Kisame. He took a closer look

The boy had spiked indigo colored hair with pointed bangs hanging in his pupil-less, lavender eyes that reminded him of someone he knew. The green marking on his face formed 2 triangles and a rhombus. He wore a loose black shirt with a white collar and cuffs. His baggy black pants were secured at the bottom with bandages. A cloth tied around his waist held the sheath of a katana sword. There was a much larger blade housed on his back using a strap. The person beside him was a girl with light brown hair tied back into a short, hasty ponytail. Her eyes were sharp and feral, with pupils like slits and red fang-shaped tattoos pointing down each cheek. The girl's headband was around her neck similar to a dog collar. She wore a blue, unzipped vest that revealed bandages around her chest and torso. Her hands were covered with skater style black gloves, exposing her clawed fingertips. Her pants were 3 quarter and dark blue. On her heels was a little brown puppy with a white muzzle, paws, and belly. The third person was dark-skinned and built with muscle. His shaved head was covered with a metal plated bandana that hid most of a big scar that went across both steely-gray eyes. He wore a Chinese style sleeveless shirt that was black and white. His arms and hands were covered with bandages and his shorts were navy-blue. He had a wooden pole strapped to his back along with a large scroll.

"Sakura, we should help them!" Naruto exclaimed.

"I don't think that's a good idea. Why don't we wait until they need help? They might be able to take Kisame on themselves. No need to get ourselves killed for nothing," Sakura reasoned. Naruto struggled with himself before snorting impatiently.

"Fine! But if I think they're in trouble, I'm going for it."

In the clearing, Ryu grabbed his sword from his back and made sure to carefully watch Kisame. Kisame grinned, revealing his serrated teeth.

"You use swords? What a coincidence," He took the wrapped object off his back and unwound the bandages from around it. "So do I."

Ryu glanced at his friends. Kenji growled under her breath and agitatedly showed her sharp canines, her body slightly crouched. Her dog, Suna, growled with her. Steel's eyes narrowed and he reached back to grip his pole.

Under the bandages, the weapon was roughly shaped like a sword, but with rounded and thick edges instead of sharp ones. It was covered with tiny blue shark scales. Kisame pointed it at Ryu.

"This sword is called Samehada."

"Shark skin?" Steel questioned under his breath. He pulled out his pole and spun it in front of him. Kenji dug in her pocket and pulled out 2 little pills. She put one in her mouth and tossed the other to Suna.

"So you're taking hyorogan?" Kisame commented in an unnervingly casual way. "That won't help you win." Suna and Kenji glowed with a blue light.

"Their chakra is visible," Sakura said.

"Let's go," Kenji yelled to her partner. Suna barked and jumped onto Kenji's head. She crouched close to the ground and made a hand seal. "Ninja Art of Beast Mimicry:" Kenji said. They both exploded into smoke. It cleared to show 2 feral looking Kenjis side by side on all fours. "Man-Beast Clones!" They echoed as one. The clones leaped into the air and yelled, "All-Fours Jutsu!" They moved at such a speed that they seemed to vanish.

Kisame tightened his grasp on Samehada and scanned the field for them. Moments later, they reappeared on opposite sides of the clearing, charging towards him with nails that more resembled claws. Kisame jumped vertically, causing them to sail harmlessly underneath him. The two leaped after in a spinning motion, turning into whirling, shredding drills.

"Twin Piercing Fang!" They called out. He deflected the attack with a single swing of his blade. The rotation slowed, glimpsing two grinning ninja. He turned in mid-air to see Ryu swinging his huge sword at him. Kisame brought his around and the two giant weapons collided with a crash. The swordsmen glared at each other and broke apart, landing on the ground below.

Steel lunged at his enemy with his spinning staff. The shark-man dodged with a back step and swung his sword. Steel blocked with his pole, but was still thrown backwards by the force behind it. He slammed into a tree, kicking up dirt. The two hidden spectators gasped.

"Steel!" One Kenji yelped. A figure walked out of the settling dust. Steel's skin was now a reflective gray color and looked as hard as his name.

"I'm okay," he assured, brushing himself off.

"What do you call that?" Kisame asked with genuine interest. Steel grinned and cracked his knuckles.

"When you mix Earth Style and Fire Style techniques a certain way, you create Metal Style. This jutsu is called 'Impenetrable Armor'. I'm as solid as tempered steel. Your sword is useless against me." Kisame laughed loudly.

"Well, I say that you're all bark and no bite! How about we test how tough you really are?" He rapidly flipped through hand signs. "Water Style: Exploding Water Shockwave!" He sucked in a breath and expelled a geyser of water from his mouth towards Steel. His target was undaunted by the pressure and charged ahead, punching straight through the waterspout and ramming his iron fist into Kisame's cheek. He stumbled backwards and wiped the blood dripping from the corner of his mouth. "That's quite a right hook you've got, kid…" Naruto cheered and Sakura quickly shushed him.

"_Is that hard skin some sort of secret jutsu? Or maybe a bloodline ability?_" Sakura thought. "_If his punch had not been slowed down by the water, it might of broken Kisame's jaw, or possibly his skull!" _ Ryu charged a second time. Kisame struck back, and their swords rang again and again like church bells as they flashed around the field. Naruto and Sakura stared, impressed with the speed of their battle. Ryu and Kisame came to a halt, pushing on each other with the weight of their swords. Kisame chuckled darkly.

"You're good, kid!" Ryu grunted under the pressure Samehada was putting on him. A sinister look crossed Kisame's face. "Think fast!" He bellowed, quickly lifting his sword to knock Ryu off balance. Kisame slashed at his exposed stomach, tearing Ryu open. Ryu fell to his knees, coughing up blood. Naruto's eyes widened. Kisame walked up to his downed opponent and grinned at him. "Samehada is a special weapon. It doesn't cut you, it rips you to shreds!" Ryu didn't respond, still kneeling in pain and shock.

"Naruto! Let's go!" Sakura commanded.

"It's about time!" Naruto leaped into the air above the clearing. Kisame looked up from his gloating and spotted a lone silhouette of a person block out the sun. Naruto made a hand sign in the shape of a cross. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" He burst into smoke, darkening the sky. About 30 perfect Naruto clones dropped out of the makeshift cloud and stood between Ryu and Kisame.

"Well, if it isn't the Nine-Tails brat!" Kisame exclaimed, recognizing him. "Care to join the party?" The mass of clones rippled with excitement. One of them laughed.

"Join? How about we crash it instead?" Behind them, Sakura watched as Steel moved a collapsed Ryu a safe distance away. Kenji stared at the scene, confusion until she suddenly understood what was going on. He was making a distraction!

"Hey!" Kenji yelled, running up to the group. "How about we help you out?"

Ryu groaned as Steel gently placed him front side up on the grass. Sakura edged closer to the injured boy until Steel stepped between them in defense of his teammate.

"It's okay, I'm a professional medic," She assured him. He backed off temporarily, but was still suspicious of her. She pulled a knife out of her holster and Steel tensed again. "I'm just taking off his shirt…" Sakura explained again. She cut away the blood stained and shredded fabric to look at the wound. Sakura gasped slightly. The skin on Ryu's abdomen area was torn to bits and pieces, revealing the damaged muscle and flesh underneath. The gash oozed a continuous stream of bodily fluids. Steel paled at the sight of the bloody mess. Sakura quickly set to work. She placed her hands slightly above the gaping slash and concentrated. A bubble of green energy formed over the wound. Sakura move her hands in a slow rubbing motion and the blood flow stopped. She took a bottle of water from her backpack and poured it on the injured area, cleaning the dirt and blood from it. As she was securing bandages around the wound, she noticed Ryu staring at her in a dazed sort of way. Sakura felt the odd need to comfort him, but dismissed it as sympathy. He had lost so much blood he would probably not remember this event. She turned to Steel instead, handing him a pill. "Give this to him; it helps to replace the blood he lost."

Meanwhile, on the other side of the field, Kisame was still busy with an endless army of orange ninja assisted by two wild girls.

"Naruto!" Sakura hollered across the clearing. "We should get going now!" Taking advantage of the clones' temporary distraction, Kisame swung his sword, cutting a path out of the mob, and charged at her.

"Leaving so soon?" Kisame growled, knocking Steel away with the back of his sword and lunging at Sakura. She realized she was too slow to get out of the way and closed her eyes in anticipation, but death never came. Sakura dared to look and was amazed to see Ryu blocking the sword meant for her with his own, blood dripping from his reopened wound. Steel was still on the ground from the blow he received. Kenji stared and Suna transformed back into a dog. Ryu's whole body, along with his sword, were glowing a deep emerald hue.

"Is that…actually chakra?" Naruto wondered out loud. Ryu knocked Kisame back.

"But-you were as good as dead!" Kisame sputtered. "How can you even get up?" Ryu ignored what he said and pointed the tip of his sword towards him, his facial marks glowing.

"How _dare_ you attack her? Have you no honor? You should have struck me instead." Kisame stared at him with nothing but disbelief. Behind him, Naruto created a shadow clone. The two formed a whirling blue ball of chakra in the real one's hand. Leaping towards Kisame, Naruto shoved it into his gut.

"Rasengan!" Kisame spun backwards into a tree and the Rasengan exploded. He pulled himself back up with difficulty and stumbled away, disappearing into the forest as he swore under his breath. Ryu's chakra faded and he crumpled to the ground, unconscious.


	3. The Hyuga Clan's Secret

`Chapter 3: The Hyuga Clan's Secret

Being Hokage was sometimes incredibly boring. Tsunade Seiju sighed as she sat at her paper-cluttered desk, staring out the window of the Hokage's tower looking over the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Her blue eyes drifted over the visible streets, filled with citizens and ninja alike. The blonde woman adjusted her green robe, weighing the pros and cons of escaping her office for a drink in town when the door to the hallway was suddenly forced open.

A frantic young woman walked in with a pig in her arms. She had short, black hair and dark eyes. Her robe was purple, and the pig had a red shirt and pearl necklace on.

"Shizune," Tsunade said. "What's the rush?" Maybe she would get something to do today after all. Shizune gasped for breath.

"Naruto and Sakura are back!" She slumped back into her seat. She had gotten all excited for nothing.

"And since when was that an emergency? They were due back anyway…"

"They're at the hospital!" Tsunade immediately focused.

"Are they hurt?"

"No, but they brought back three Leaf ninja with them they claimed to have found, and one of them is in bad condition!" The Fifth Hokage stood up.

"Tell the medics I'll be there."

* * *

In Konoha Hospital, the most skilled medical ninja within the village heals her unknown patient.

"All I have to do is fix the tissue around the wound and I'm done," Tsunade said as she regenerated Ryu's skin. "After resting a few days, he should be fine. The only things I can't heal are the scars." She turned to the kunoichistanding behind her. "Sakura." Sakura snapped to attention.

"Yes, My Lady?"

"I noticed that the patient was already bandaged. Did you attempt to heal him before you all got back?" Sakura hesitated before answering.

"…Yes." Tsunade paused before speaking again.

"I have a feeling that if you had not given him first-aid, he might not have made it back to the village."

"What do you mean, My Lady?"

"I'm saying that you could have possibly saved his life." Sakura stopped breathing.

"What?" Sakura stammered. Tsunade smiled at her shock. Her student could be so naïve at times.

"You saved him, and I think he should know that." And before Sakura could object, Tsunade left. Sakura sat down and thought about what her Sensei had just bluntly informed her. She had saved his life? What was she supposed to do now? Did he owe her or something? Sakura had only started training as a medical ninja two months ago. She had asked Tsunade for permission to become her apprentice right after Sasuke left home. Sasuke…Would he have stayed if is she had saved his life? Sakura cut her train of thought. Right now wasn't the time to think about him. He was gone and she could do nothing about that. Not now anyway…Sakura was interrupted by the door creaking open. The boy's two teammates walked in.

"Uh, excuse me. Are visitors allowed?" The girl asked. Sakura stood up.

"Yes, but he's not up yet." They walked over to the bed and examined him.

"Is he going to be okay?" She asked again.

"Of course he is!" Sakura said confidently. "Lady Tsunade is the greatest medic in Konoha!"

"She must be," The dark skinned boy said softly, making a startling contrast with his physical appearance. "The damage was so bad, but all that's left are a few scars." The girl suddenly turned around.

"I'm sorry! We just walked in without introducing ourselves! I'm Kenji Inuzuka and this is my dog, Suna." The brown puppy that Sakura failed to notice had walked in barked a greeting. Kenji elbowed the boy next to her.

"Oww…" She gave him a look. "Alright already…My name is Steel Hageta."

Kenji pointed to the unconscious boy on the bed.

"And his name is Ryuyoshi Hyuga. No one calls him that though. Just Ryu." So his last name is Hyuga. No wonder he had seemed familiar! Sakura knew two fellow genin with the same surname. The Hyuga clan was the largest in the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Was he possibly related to Hinata or Neji? She knew Hinata had a younger sister, but that was all. Ryu looked around Hinata's age, so it couldn't be true. Did Neji even have siblings? He never really talked about his immediate family other than his father. Neji was a year older than Sakura's graduating class, so they could be brothers. Sakura returned to the conversation.

"Inuzuka, as in the clan? I know someone from there. Do you know Kiba?"

"Actually, Steel, Ryu, and I were only born in Konoha. We were all raised by our sensei, Master Saiko, outside the village. We were not allowed any contact with or information from our clans except for knowing our last names. It would distract us from training," Kenji said seriously. "The only things I got from my parents were training scrolls and Suna."

"But that's like being raised as orphans!" Sakura objected. She could not imagine being completely alone.

"Not really," Steel said. "Master Saiko was like a father to us, especially Ryu." Tsunade walked into the room reading a medical file and the conversation died. She looked up and spotted the three.

"What are you doing in here! This is a hospital, not a lounge! She shoved them out. "You two are fine. Consider yourselves dismissed from the hospital." Kenji and Steel nodded and left. Tsunade turned to Sakura and handed her a small scroll. "Go find Naruto and tell him to deliver this to Hiashi Hyuga. He should know where to go. "I'd give it to an ANBU ninja, but all of the units are currently busy."

"Yes, My Lady!" She headed towards the exit.

* * *

Naruto started in on his fifth bowl of ramen. It had definitely been a good idea to come to Ichiraku Ramen Shop. The owners, Teuchi and his teenage daughter Ayame, quickly boiled more noodles for their best customer. He had been looking forward to coming to their ramen stall since he came back. No more tasks to distract him from eating.

"Naruto!" He knew it was too good to be true… Sakura ran to the stall, "Lady Tsunade needs you to deliver this to the Hyuga clan leader."

Naruto sulked, "I'm in the middle of lunch. Can't she get someone else to do it? I'm tired of being her errand boy."

"No, because she asked _you_!" Sakura growled, making a fist.

Naruto paled and backed up. "Fine, I'll do it!" He took the scroll and got up, "I'll be back later!" He teleported away.

"Now where did the Hyuga clan live again?" Naruto asked himself as he walked through the residential area section of Konoha. He ended up at the wrought- iron gates of a large house connected to a smaller one. "I think I found it. But how am I supposed to enter? They won't just let anyone waltz in." Naruto looked down the sidewalk and saw a familiar long haired boy walking in his direction. "Hey, Neji!" Naruto waved to grab his attention.

Neji had long dark brown hair paced in a low ponytail ending at his lower back. A black, steel plated headband covered his forehead with two straps hanging off the sides. His eyes were a pale purple color and empty. He had a short sleeve shirt and black shorts. His right arm and leg were wrapped in bandages.

"Can you deliver this for me?" Naruto asked him as he stopped at the gates. Neji smirked in amusement.

"You were standing there because of that? It looked like you wanted to break in."

"Really?" Naruto asked, completely missing the sarcasm. "I was sent here to give this to someone, but I don't know what he looks like." The older boy sighed.

"Give the scroll to me." Naruto passed it to him and he twirled it in his hands, searching for the label. Neji located it and his breath caught in his throat. Naruto tilted his head.

"Does that mean that you'll do it for me?" Neji nodded and jumped the gate, not bothering to open it. He went into the building at an abnormally fast pace. Naruto shrugged his shoulders. "I guess so…" He started walking back to town. "He acts so weird sometimes. Was that note really so important? Not my problem now." He paused, suddenly remembering something. "Wait…If I'm done, then I get to finish lunch!" Naruto bounded off with more enthusiasm than before. "Ramen, here I come!"

Neji passed through the halls of the Hyuga estate as quickly as he could without attraction unwanted attention, muttering silently to himself under his breath.

"I can't believe him, standing around with an important message!" He passed a statue and stopped at a sliding wooden door. "What would have happened if I wasn't there?" Neji knocked.

"Enter," A deep voice said. Neji slid open the door and walked inside. The room was large and void of furniture with smooth hardwood floors. Towards the back wall, paintings on scrolls were hung up for display. On the back wall, an antique sword was resting on a holder. A young girl was standing with her back to Neji, facing an older man. Their pale eyes were identical. The girl had long brown hair with two long bangs hanging in her face. She wore a black, sleeveless shirt and three quarter black pants. She looked about eight. The man also had long hair, but without bangs covering his forehead. He wore loose white robes and a serious expression on his face. Neji walked beside the girl and bowed.

"Lord Hiashi, I have a message from the Hokage." The man nodded.

"Bring it to me." Neji handed it to him. Hiashi started reading the scroll. As he was reading, Neji turned to the girl. She had been standing before, but now she was sitting on the floor, panting as if exhausted. He noticed that she was covered in a sheen of sweat. Were they training before he came? Hiashi suddenly rolled the scroll closed.

"_I'm going to be busy tomorrow, aren't I?"_ He thought to himself. "Hanabi." The girl snapped to attention.

"Yes, Father?"

"Today's training is over. You may leave now." He turned to Neji. "You may leave as well." Hiashi waited as they left the room. As soon as he heard their footsteps die, he left the room as well and walked up the hallway to a statue. It was a life size stone carving of a boy, a girl, and a dragon. The boy was holding a stone sword with its tip wedged in the circular pedestal. The very similar looking girl was holding a scroll in her arms. The looming dragon stood behind them sitting on its haunches, its long tail wrapped around the pedestal. Strapped to its thick arm was a stone shield. Hiashi touched the scroll and his hand sank in, as if it were liquid. He removed a real scroll identical to the carving. He repeated it on the shield, finding a real one as well. The objects seemed to pulsate, similar to a heartbeat. Hiashi smiled to himself. "Because of Ryu's return, the Hyuga clan will once again rise to become the strongest ninja in the land."

* * *

**Random Filler**

"What do you mean, someone already ate it?" Naruto yelled after he got back to the ramen shop.

"I'm sorry, but another customer came while you were gone and asked if she could have your bowl. I could make another one for you if you like," Teuchi offered. Naruto grumbled to himself.

"I leave for half an hour to run an errand, and some random chick steals my ramen!" He turned to Teuchi. "Who was she anyway?" Teuchi shrugged his shoulders.

"I have no clue. I didn't catch her name, but she had tattoos on her cheeks and a little dog."

"Who's evil enough to steal ramen?"

Kenji walked down the street in a satisfied way. That ramen shop she had found after leaving the hospital was great!

"I really enjoyed that bowl of ramen I had for lunch! I can't believe that someone just left it there to get cold. Well, we didn't get it go to waste, did we Suna?" Suna barked from atop Kenji's head. Whoever left it obviously didn't want it.


	4. The Hyuga Clan's Secret part 2

Author note: chapter 4 is up earlier than i expected. And i'm also in the middle of writing a new fanfiction based off of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky, a video game i'm fond of. It's not taking priority over this one though. Just something i want to do in my spare time.

Chapter 4: The Hyuga Clan's Secret (Part 2)

Ryu was deeply unconscious, floating in the darkness of his own mind. All around was pitch-black. But moments later, a light appeared, piercing the abyss. He focused on the sign of life and moved towards it, giving him the illusion of walking on a surface. As he approached, Ryu noticed that the light took a greenish tinge and was shaped like something. Having a flash of insight, he realized it was a dragon. Reaching the light's source, the dragon spoke, its voice young.

"So you are awake…sort of…"

"Hikari!" Ryu exclaimed, excited. "Where are we? What is this place?"

"To be specific, inside your head," Hikari replied. "Your body however, is in the hospital. You, Kenji, and Steel were brought to Konoha."

"So we did make it!"

"Yeah, but you almost got us killed on the way there!" Hikari retorted angrily. Ryu thought about the battle for a second.

"Speaking of almost dying, did you lend me chakra back at the clearing? I had nothing left, but I was still able to get up."

"Not exactly. It's more like you forced it from me. As I told you before, ever since Saiko gave you my sword, our souls, normally kept separate, have slowly started to merge into one. And that was four years ago! More and more of my chakra is leaking into your body and mixing with your chakra. Sooner or later…" He stopped abruptly and turned as if he heard a sound. "I believe it is time to return to reality," Hikari murmured, the light fading. Ryu snapped awake, just as Tsunade walked into the room.

"Oh good, you're awake." She said. "You have been unconscious since yesterday morning."

A young twelve year old girl leaped over the rooftops of the Hidden Leaf Village in a rush to get to something she was obviously late for. She had neck length, indigo hair with short bangs covering her forehead and two longer bangs framing her face. Her headband was hanging loosely around her neck like a necklace. She wore a beige sweatshirt with a hood and blue Capri-styled pants. Her pupiless eyes darted around as if looking for someone. She jumped off the roof she was currently on and followed a dirt trail leading out of the main village into the deciduous forest. The well worn path led her to a small clearing with wooden posts and damaged trees. Standing around in the middle were two similar aged boys and a little white dog with brown ears. They turned at the sound of her emerging from the trees. The shorter boy standing closest to the dog had short, messy brown hair and eyes with slit pupils. He had red downward curving fangs tattooed on his cheeks. A headband was tied to his forehead. The boy wore a gray coat with black fur on the hood and sleeve edges. He wore blue pants with a holster strapped to his right leg. The taller boy with dark shades beside him wore a light gray trench coat with a large collar blocking half his face from view. He also wore a headband around his forehead. His black hair was almost afro-like in style. He had blue pants ending at mid-shin. The brown haired boy yelled towards her.

"Hey, Hinata! What took you so long? Akamaru and I were here ages ago." Akamaru barked in agreement. He turned to the silent boy next to him. "Even Shino got here before you." Hinata came to a stop in front of them.

"Sorry, Kiba," she panted. "Father stopped me from leaving." It was unusual, but true. Her father had informed her to meet him at the hospital later that day. Hinata found it strange because he barely did anything with her, only Hanabi or Neji. He rarely even talked to her!

"You're lucky Kurenai-sensei isn't here yet!" Kiba said, interrupting her thoughts.

"Sensei is very…critical when it comes to being punctual," Shino added unexpectedly, his voice a deep murmur.

"Speaking of tardy and Sensei, where is she?" Hinata asked, taking the spotlight off of her.

"I dunno," Kiba answer quickly in an uncaring way. "Guess what happened yesterday? I was walking out the house, and this girl bumped into me."

"Really?"

"Yeah, she said her name was Kenji and, get this," Kiba said, getting into his story. "She ended up being my cousin from out of town!"

"Your cousin?" Shino asked. "What are the odds of running into your cousin?" He said skeptically.

"What are you trying to say? That I made it up?" Kiba snapped, stepping closer to Shino's face. "Do you wanna fight or something?" Shino stared at him from behind his dark sunglasses.

"No, but it appears that you want to," he stated calmly.

"Why I oughta…!"

"I'm sure that's not what he meant, Kiba!" Hinata said quickly, trying to break up the fight.

"What are you three arguing about?" A feminine voice interjected. They spun around.

"Sensei!" Kiba exclaimed. She was a dark haired young woman, her eyes a piercing red. She wore a loose sleeved red dress and a headband on her forehead, just under her widow's peak.

"Since I finally made it, how about we start training?"

"Alright!"

Meanwhile, back at the hospital…

"What!" Sakura yelled in response to her teacher's request in the empty hallway. "Why do I have to do it? Can't someone else take care of him!" Tsunade stood her ground.

"You saved him, so I'm making you responsible for him. Just think of it as training!" Tsunade persuaded her. Sakura sighed in resignation.

"You told him about me, didn't you?" She asked, already guessing the answer. Tsunade nodded.

"As I said before, he should know who saved him."

"Fine." Sakura sulked into the occupied room. Ryu was sitting on the bed, its side pushed up against the wall, talking to a familiar orange clad ninja. "Naruto!" Sakura exclaimed. "What the heck are you doing here?" Naruto turned around in his chair.

"Hi, Sakura! Since Master Jiriya is doing his 'research' today, I decided to visit Ryu. Right?" Naruto asked turning to face him. His smile faded. "Hey, what's wrong?" Seconds after Sakura had walked in, Ryu went silent, his going slightly red. He seemed to be trying his very hardest not to meet her eyes.

"Are you okay?" Sakura asked, concerned. She took a few steps forward towards the bed. He seemed to get worse.

"I'm fine, you don't have to come over here," He stammered, finding his voice about an octave higher than it usually was. Naruto silently looked on, amused by the awkward tension between the two.

"Are you sure? It looks like you have a slight fever." Sakura got closer, and Ryu turned a deeper shade of red. She ignored him and continued. "Really, it's not that big of a deal. Just let me…" She tripped over Naruto's foot and fell forward. Ryu instinctively caught her by the waist and Sakura gripped him around the neck for balance, but his already hurt abdomen gave out under the extra strain and they fell backwards onto the hospital bed. The sudden fall caused their lips to meet. The room seemed to freeze over. Naruto stared in shock. Ryu and Sakura acted paralyzed, still kissing. Ryu's face was now doing an excellent impression of a ripe tomato. Sakura pushed herself up and backed away, apologizing.

"Um, Sakura…?" Naruto said checking the still frozen boy on the bed. "You can stop that now, I think he fainted."

"Really?" She asked nervously. He grinned again.

"Wow, you didn't even hit him and he's out cold!" He sniggered. Sakura blushed.

"I'm gonna hit you in a second!" She threatened.

Later that day, Hinata stood at Ryu's hospital door.

"Father told me it was this room, but I still don't get why I'm supposed to be here…" She hesitated for a long minute before a hand grasped the doorknob in front of her. Hinata spun around to meet Hiashi's eyes. "Father!" she squeaked in surprise.

"Good, you're here. We're going inside now," He said, as if he were present the whole time. The door creaked open. Hiashi stepped inside first, with Hinata trailing after. She took in the strangely familiar boy's face as they passed. His pale eyes made it clear that he was of the Hyuga clan, but she did not recognize him. Wouldn't she have recalled the unique marks on his face? Ryu stared back unabashed. They were the first people that had the same look as him that Ryu had seen since he got to the village. The only other person he knew with those eyes was Master Saiko. Was this the so called Hyuga clan he had read about in history books? And this girl looked so much like him! They looked around the same height, within an inch or two. Their hair color and length were identical. They could possibly be the same age. This made no sense at all. Hiashi finally cut the tension. "Ryuyoshi." Ryu stood up straight.

"Yes, Sir?"

"I assume Saiko told you what your last name stands for?"

"…Yes."

"Very well then." He took a step forward. "I am Hiashi Hyuga, leader of the Hyuga clan…and your father." Hinata's eyes widened. What was he talking about? How could this boy be her brother? Wasn't Hanabi her only sibling? Ryu broke the silence with a question.

"How?" A slight smile crossed Hiashi's face.

"Did you not notice the similarities between you and Hinata?" He asked rhetorically, turning to her as she was mentioned. "You two are fraternal twins, purposely separated at birth. Ryuyoshi is the older one, by three minutes." Hinata regained the ability to speak.

"Why were we brought up apart?"

"The reasoning is incredibly complicated and the hospital is not the place to discuss it. Besides, the two of you have not met for almost 13 years. Why don't you get to know each other before asking questions?" Hiashi walked to the door. "Ryuyoshi, take your belongings. You are coming with us. It is time you were introduced to the rest of the clan."

The walk home was a quiet one. Hinata was trying not to stare at the unfamiliar boy beside her, while Ryu was in deep thought. So he was not just some member of the Hyuga clan, but the son of its leader. His eyes bored into Hiashi's back as he followed. How strong was he? His gaze drifted to Hinata. Assuming she was the heir, how strong was she? Hinata did not even seem tough, let alone confident! Hinata was also questioning him. The sword strapped to Ryu's back was almost as big as him! How can he carry it? He might look similar to her, but they were obviously different. The look in his eyes was focused and calculating as he scanned the crowded village streets. He was tensed as if waiting for an attacker. The group reached the gates of the Hyuga clan compound and entered the house. Hiashi addressed his daughter.

"Hinata, take Ryuyoshi to your room. If the clan sees him now, there will be uproar. I will inform them." He walked off. Hinata turned to Ryu and caught his eye. She stared at the floor in embarrassment.

"Uh… It's…this way," She murmured. She turned in the opposite direction that Hiashi had gone and walked down the empty hallway, while Ryu followed. She led him to a sliding bamboo door at the hall's end. "It's slightly small…" Walking in, Ryu looked around. The room was relatively small compared to the whole building, but still a decent size. A window on the other side let in the afternoon sun, illuminating a low table. A _futon_ was rolled up and stored in the corner. A dresser pushed against the wall was topped with equipment, picture frames, and a little wooden box. Another door led to a small bathroom. Across from the dresser was a fish tank on a stand. Ryu dropped his bag next to the table and walked to the tank, watching the many brightly colored fish. Hinata carefully closed the door. She watched Ryu for a moment. Was he really that mesmerized by the fish? He lifted his finger and tapped the tank. The fish that had gathered to get a better look at him swam away. A disappointed scowl crossed his face. Hinata giggled from behind him. "They don't like it when people tap the tank," she said, kneeling beside Ryu.

"How did you get them in there?" Ryu asked.

"Um…they're store-bought."

"You can but fish as pets? The only fish I had were _Koi_ fish, but they lived in a pond." Hinata hesitated before speaking again.

"You can feed then if you want to…" She said, getting a cylinder container off the dresser. He took it and started shaking food into the tank. "If you give them too much, they'll die!"

"Oops!"

During the short time left alone, Ryu and Hinata learned many things about each other. Sometimes they appeared similar, such as both of them liking snow. But at other times they were different, such as food preferences.

"What do you mean, you don't like shellfish?"

"I'm sorry, I just don't!"

And also, likes and dislikes.

"To tell the truth, butterflies scare me…"

"…You're joking, right?"

Along with hobbies.

"I press flowers in my spare time!"

"Actually, I think I'm allergic to flowers…and plants in general."

"…"

"Don't laugh at me!"

Late at night in the Hokage's office, a shadowy figure was summoned. Lady Tsunade handed the figure 3 scrolls.

"What's this?" the figure asked.

"It is the data on the 3 genin I would like you to mentor. Kenji Inuzuka, Steel Hageta, and Ryuyoshi Hyuga."

"So I'm a teacher now?"

"Right," Tsunade answered. "I believe this is your first genin squad?"

"Yeah, but I won't mess it up!"

"Good. Be here tomorrow at 8:00 AM."

"I'm gonna have some fun with these kids!"

Author note: first poll- does anyone have any good ideas for a C-rank mission? i really need one soon for a later chapter. Just leave any ideas in the review section or something. And if you want to, you can also guess who the new Sensei is. Whoever gets it first will get the honor of giving an idea for a later part of the story.(I'll ask when it's time.)


	5. Squad 21 Assembles

Chapter 5: Squad 21 Assembles

Author Note- first of all, thank you readers for favoriting/alerting this story. And the people who took the time to write a review. That really lights up my day when I check my email to see that stuff. This chapter is a little shorter than I liked, but it sets up for other stuff. It took alot longer than usual to type because of mid-term exams. The good news is that I passed and i'm done with this chapter. Oh, and is anyone looking to beta for this story? Just PM my if you are.

* * *

Ryu was once again unconscious, but this time, the darkness was replaced with a snowy winter night. The white blanketed scenery blurred before his eyes. Was he being carried? Ryu's position shifted and he caught glimpses of brightly painted rooftops under the fresh snow. At this height he could even see Konoha's Great Stone Faces, a monument to the village's past and present Hokage. Moving again, he could now identify the person transporting him as Saiko, albeit slightly younger than the present time. Suddenly, Ryu felt a stabbing sensation in his side and the dream ended as abruptly as it started. He awoke to a pair of pale, empty eyes inches from his own.

"Gah!" They bumped heads and Ryu got up from his temporary futon on the ground. He swore under his breath. "What was that for?" Ryu demanded from her.

"I was trying to wake you up!" Hanabi answered, the seven year old still rubbing her forehead. "It's already 7:30 in the morning."

"So?" Ryu retorted, grumbling at the time. He had stayed up until about midnight the day before, joining up with the rest of the clan and talking. After his father explained their unique situation, most of them accepted Ryu as a member. He had met Neji, his cousin who did not have a solid opinion of him, and Hanabi. After Ryu made an off-handed comment that his youngest sister was "too short to possibly be in the academy", she had left. "I thought that you weren't talking to me, Short-Stack." He said, taunting her as he pulled his shirt on. Ryu heard a growl from behind him.

"Don't call me short! I only bothered because father asked me to wake you."

"Sure…" Ryu said in a tone that said the opposite. He packed the last of his equipment. "You have such a short fuse," He walked out the room just as the front doorbell rang. Hinata, in casual clothing, opened the door for a man in a black sleeveless shirt and black pants under white armor. He had a small katana on his back and a white cat mask covering his face.

"I have a delivery for Ryuyoshi Hyuga from Lady Hokage," the intimidating man informed her, handing her a sealed scroll. She accepted it and the mysterious solider disappeared under cover of swirling leaves. She closed the door and suppressed a shudder. The porcelain animal masks and lack of emotion of the ANBU Black Ops Unit unsettled her. Seconds later, Ryu walked into the entryway, followed by Hanabi.

"Ryu, there's a message for you. I'm not sure what it is though…" He took it and read the scroll's contents.

_**Ryuyoshi Hyuga-**_

_**You are required to meet with your newly assigned squad Sensei at 8:00 A.M. today. This is mandatory.**_

_**-The Fifth Hokage**_

"Wait, that's in…" He checked the wall clock. "30 minutes! I have to leave now!" Ryu rushed out the door. "I'll be back later!" Hinata stared after him.

"His team is already getting a Sensei?" She turned her attention to her younger sister, who looked irritated. "Did something happen between you and"-

"Nothing!" Hanabi answered, cutting her off. They were awkwardly silent for a moment. "Um...Hinata?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you think I'm…small for my age?" Another awkward silence followed.

"What made you say that?"

Steel waked down the cobblestone path leading to the Hokage's Tower, throwing and catching a scroll as he went. 2 days earlier, he had met the Hageta clan, along with his parents. Steel's clan worked as black smiths, using their bloodline abilities to create armor, weapons, and other metal equipment. Hageta clan members could mix the elements fire and earth to make an unlimited amount of metal. They could also manipulate metal in any form, including the iron and zinc in animals and people. But doing this takes more energy than normal and quickly tires out the user. The Hageta clan's products were sold all over the Land of Fire and praised for excellent craftsmanship. Steel's father started giving him metal working lessons the day he returned, and was pleased to se that he was good at it. That morning, he had received a message from the Hokage.

"Steel!" A familiar voice called out to him. Kenji ran to is side, Suna hot on her heels. "Did you get a note?"

"Yeah, did you?" Kenji flashed him a scroll.

"Do you think Ryu got one?"

"Probably, if we're getting assigned a teacher," Steel said, before someone plowed into him from behind. Steel did not budge, but the other landed ungracefully on his backside.

"Not again…" Ryu groaned, holding his throbbing head. Steel was about as soft as a brick wall.

"Ryu!" Kenji exclaimed. "We haven't seen you since the hospital!" Steel hoisted him up by the back of his shirt.

"Why are you in such a rush? Going to the tower?" Steel questioned.

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

"We were summoned as well. We should hurry up and get there."

In Tsunade's office, Steel, Kenji, and Ryu's teacher is introduced…kind of.

"I can't believe she's late!" Tsunade bellowed, pacing back and forth across the room. The three genin stood by silently as she complained- until the smoke bomb went off, that is. There was a small commotion as the smoke cleared. Between Tsunade and the genin stood a young woman with short, black hair kept in a wild ponytail. She wore a pale, unbuttoned trench coat showing her fishnet shirt and beige miniskirt. Under the skirt were fishnet shorts. Cracked shin guards were strapped to her legs, overlapping her sandals. A snake fang tied to a nylon cord hung around her neck.

"Anko Mitarashi, at your service!" She announced to the room, adjusting her headband under her bangs. The room was stone silent. Ryu, Kenji and Steel had weapons drawn. "Wow, tough crowd…" A vein was throbbing in her forehead as Tsunade stomped up to the overly eager Special Jonin.

"What the heck was that?" Tsunade demanded. Anko shrank away. "I thought I told you, no more smoke bombs in my office!"

"But… I just wanted to make a cool entrance!" Anko whined. The Hokage restrained herself.

"Okay…" Tsunade said slowly. "You three will have Anko as your new sensei. The four of you will be grouped together as Squad 21. She will accompany you on all missions until you are deemed experienced enough to take care of yourselves." Tsunade sat back down in her chair. "Now please leave before I lose my patience."

"Alright!" Anko yelled. "Follow me to the training fields!" She leaped out of an open window onto the tower's rooftop, heading off.

"Can't we just take the stairs?" Ryu yelled after her.

"Forget it. She can't hear you." Steel said.

"That's okay, we can track her down!" Kenji reassured them. She jumped out the window after Anko, Suna following. Steel rolled his eyes.

"Here we go again…" He followed Kenji.

"Hey, wait for me!" Ryu joined his team, and they trailed their sensei.

Tsunade sighed and pulled out a bottle of alcohol, serving herself in a shot glass.

"I really hope Anko brings them back in one piece."

"Sensei sure seems fired up!" Kenji said, still following Anko's scent.

"Fired up?" Ryu muttered to Steel, both lagging behind. "I'd say more like ADHD or something…"

"Yeah, I know, but it's not like we have a choice or anything," Steel muttered back. "Hey, Kenji! Are we getting closer, or what?"

"Almost!" She yelled. "There's a break in the trees up ahead." Another minute passed in silence until they dropped into a huge clearing, dominated by an ancient forest surrounded by a tall, chain link fence. The trees towering over the manmade barrier kept the area in almost constant darkness, masking the owners of various sinister noises such as growls and screeches.

"It's about time you all caught up!" Anko greeted them.

"What is this place?" Ryu questioned, staring ahead. Anko laughed to herself.

"Take a good look, kids, because you'll soon be staying here!" She pointed out the name plate bolted to the fence. "This is training ground number 44, affectionately nicknamed the Forest of Death. It's normally used to hold the second part of the Chunin Selection Exams, but I reserved it for a special purpose. In two days, I'm going to give you a test as genin in this arena."

"A test! But didn't we already take a test to become genin with Master Saiko? That's how we earned these headbands." He said.

"You don't understand how the system works. The test you were given was to simply see if you knew the basic ninja skills taught in the Academy. Passing means you only have the _potential_ to become genin. After being assigned an instructor, you are tested again to see if you can apply the skills you learned to a real situation while working as a team. This weeds out people who aren't ready for actual ninja work." Kenji thought for a moment.

"So what happens if we fail?" She asked.

"Well, standard procedure would have you sent back to the Academy for remedial courses, but there is no limit to how many times you can try to graduate."

"Then we're definitely not failing this test!" Steel said with confidence.

"Hold on, hotshot! Lets see how you feel once I tell you the rules. The test will be a mock retrieval mission. Your target is my necklace. You will have 48 hours, exactly two days, starting at sunrise to steal it from me. That's easier said than done, because I'm going to just hand it over! Even worse is the fact that we will all be stuck in there." She said, gesturing to the forest. "The Forest of Death is no cakewalk. It's home to wild beasts, poisonous plants, deadly insects, and the dead bodies of unlucky ninja."

"I'm not afraid of a dumb forest!" Ryu said in an attempt to disguise the shaking in his voice.

"That's what all the tough guys say…before they start screaming in the middle of the night." Ryu paled and went silent. "Continuing with the rules, you are not allowed to leave the forest boundaries before time is up unless you give in. You can use any tools and techniques you want during the test to complete the mission. And… I think that's it." Anko paused to think. "Oh, and try not to die! That looks bad on my record." She smiled. "Alright then! Squad 21 is dismissed. See you in two days at six A.M."

After they returned to town, Squad 21 broke apart to prepare for the Genin Exam. Steel had gone to a weapon store he discovered earlier to purchase supplies, while Kenji and Ryu returned to their respective homes for more training.

"The Forest of Death?" Hinata stammered. "Why would she make you go there? People have died in that place!"

"So the forest really is dangerous? I thought Sensei was just pulling our legs or something." Ryu rested his head on the table in his room, burying his face in his arms. "Then we're pretty much screwed…" he moaned, breaking down.

"Ryu, don't think like that!" Hinata said, trying to pry him off. "My team got through the Forest of Death, and so did others in the Chunin Exams." He lifted his head again.

"Wait…You were in the Chunin Exams? I thought you were a genin?" Hinata blushed.

"I didn't say I _passed_ the Chunin Exams. Neji beat me in the third round preliminary matches." He sighed.

"Well, it doesn't matter if we survive the forest. We have to outsmart Anko- sensei, and I don't think we can beat a Special Jonin-level ninja."

"So you do not believe that you are skilled enough to pass as a genin?" Hiashi asked as he walked into the room with a large scroll in his hands. He placed it on the table. "Maybe this will help."

"What is it?" The twins asked at the same time.

"Are you both familiar with the Hyuga clan's three most prized possessions?"

"Of course!" Ryu said. "The sword, the shield, and the scroll! The old legends claim that they were given as presents from the Dragon King to the original clan leaders, Hikari and Kuro. The sword went to Hikari, the scroll went to Kuro, and the shield went to Ryu-Neji, their dragon guardian."

"And what is the name of the sword on your back?"

"Uh…it has many titles, but the two well known names are _Ryutsume_ and the Sword of Yin."

"Yes the weapon you carry is the Sword of Yin, and this is its opposite, the Scroll of Yang. It contains all the records of the Hyuga clan, from history and secret techniques, to family trees and lineages. But as the sword is inherently yours to wield, the scroll is Hinata's."

"Wait, really?" She asked.

"Yes, but the reason I am showing you now is because of what else it contains. The Scroll of Yang is also called the Dragon Contract scroll. Signing it in your own blood lets you summon the Dragon King and all of his subjects for assistance."

"Whoa!" Ryu said, amazed. "If signing it lets you summon dragons, then it would definitely give me an advantage!"

"Then I suggest you both sign it and start training."

* * *

Okay, this is where my story breaks from cannon and becomes an AU (alternate Universe). None of the information above about the Hyuga clan is in the manga, but it will be a major part of the plot once the story hits the Shippuden Saga. Until then, bits and pieces will be revealed about the Hyuga clan's past. And yes the use of the name Neji is not a coincidence. In this time line, the Neji of the present was named after the dragon known as Ryu-Neji. Okay, i'm done.


	6. Preparations

Chapter 6: Preparations

Kenji unsheathed the steel claws from her black gloves and for what felt like the hundredth time that day, slashed at the wooden training dummy. Since she had started her session in her backyard, the dummy had been cut, punched, kicked, stabbed, tackled, and bitten. But just as Kenji went in for the "finishing blow", a whirling gray drill slammed into the dummy's side, tearing it out of the ground and pinning it to a nearby tree.

"Hey!" she yelped. The drill slowed and Kiba reappeared. He back flipped off the damaged trunk and landed almost gracefully on his feet.

"And that move is called Tunneling Fang," Kiba said, proud of his work. Kenji growled.

"Kiba, I don't have time to mess around! I have training to do for a test. It's very important!" He grinned at her frustration, showing off his pointed teeth.

"Oh, calm down! I was just having some fun. If you want, I could show you a new technique to make up for my "interruption" or whatever."

"A new technique?" Kenji asked, forgetting her annoyance.

"Yeah! It starts off like this." He called to their dogs playing under a tree. "Hey, Akamaru!" The little white dog bounded over. Use Dynamic Marking on that boulder over there."

"Dynamic Marking?"

"You'll see!"

Akamaru leapt over the bolder, peeing on it as he went by.

"And what purpose does that serve? Other than making the rock smell bad, I mean."

"No, that's the purpose." Kenji sighed. This was getting dumber by the second. "And now it gets exciting!" Kiba scaled a tree and jumped into the air. Akamaru landed on his head. Kiba made a hand sign. "Inuzuka-style Combo Transformation!" The sky filled with smoke, covering the yard with a fog. It gradually cleared, unveiling a gigantic, snarling, two headed wolf-dog. Its fur was snow white and its two pairs of eyes burned a savage red.

"Sotoro!" It roared. "Two Headed Wolf!" Kenji's mouth was open, but sound didn't come out. She was stunned speechless. Sotoro launched himself forward, twirling like a corkscrew. His spinning body became a focused hurricane, the giant drill flashing blue and white as it passed by. Trees off to the side were sliced by the intense wind, acting as scythes. "Wolf's Fang over Fang!" The spiraling strike collided with the boulder, making an impact that sounded more like an explosion. As the dust and debris settled, Kenji saw Sotoro on the other side of the rock, which now had a perfectly circular tunnel running through it. Moments later, it split in two with a loud crack, right down its center. Sotoro burst back into smoke, turning back into Kiba and Akamaru.

"That was amazing! You cut that boulder clean in half!" Kenji said, running over.

"See?" Kiba said. "Wolf's Fang over Fang is a really strong move, but since we spin so muck faster than normal, we can't see where we're going. Using Dynamic Marking on the target first let's us aim before we attack."

"Teach me how to do the transformation part!" He laughed at her impatience.

"Going straight for the fun part, huh? That takes a while to master, so maybe you should start with Dynamic Marking practice."

"Okay then! Suna, you saw them! Use Dynamic Marking. They spent the rest of the afternoon learning to mark targets.

"Summoning!" Ryu bit his thumb, just hard enough to draw blood, and slammed his palm on the ground. The blood formed a complicated red pattern on the earth from under his hand. It glowed and erupted in white smoke, the sound of something popping into existence filling the air. Ryu waited impatiently as the clouds cleared, revealing… an egg. He collapsed into a sitting position on the dirt, growling to himself.

Ryu had been working on the Summoning Jutsu for hours with Hinata and their father. The only things he seemed to be capable of getting were eggs, and they were useless in a battle. But then again, eggs were better than nothing, which was what Hinata was summoning. She was currently lying on her back, completely exhausted and hardly moving.

Hinata stared at the passing sky, her vision blurring occasionally. She did not have nearly as much chakra as Ryu possessed, and the almost non-stop hours of training had drained her of any energy left to use. Her body felt icy and numb… except for that one spot in her stomach area. If it were visible, it would be a small point of power hidden by her chakra. It was always present, but could only give small amounts of energy at a time. The burning sensation was much more noticeable when she had less strength, like a backup generator. But no matter how hard she willed the "heat" to spread, it did not. It was almost as if the extra chakra was being blocked by a barrier of some sort. She had felt the sensation before during the Chunin Exams after having her chakra sealed by Neji. It was no different now, if not stronger. The suppressed heat almost burned her as it struggled to free itself. Hinata groaned in response.

"What are we doing wrong, Father?" Ryu asked. He was frustrated from their lack of results considering the time and effort they put into their training. Hiashi moved from the spot he had chosen to observe from.

"Ryuyoshi, you are not using the correct amount of control for the chakra this Jutsu requires. Work on your focus before you start again," He said, tapping Ryu lightly on the forehead with his cane. Ryu frowned, irritated with himself. He had mistakenly thought that the Summoning Jutsu was going to be easy, so the more he failed, the more frustrated he got. And the more frustrated he got, the less focus he could obtain.

"Fine then," Ryu murmured. He needed a break anyway…. Ryu crossed his legs and closed his eyes, relaxing his body and mind. His facial marks glowed faintly as he slipped into a meditative state. As an afterthought, Hiashi activated his Byakugan. The veins around his eyes bulged and his irises turned from pearl to white, the ghostly pupils faintly outlined. With his heightened eyesight, Hiashi could now detect the network of chakra pathways within living creatures. Blue energy spiraled from Ryu's center, causing his body to gain a luminescent shine as it circulated like blood. At his very core, a dwindling blue fire burned, sometimes flickering green. Hiashi's piercing gaze drifted to Hinata. Her chakra network was the opposite. The pathways were not lit, but dark, and the center was a weakly crackling green flame. Hiashi released Byakugan and walked over to his daughter.

"Hinata, it is admirable that you are trying to perform a technique that is well beyond the reach of a regular Genin, but there is no shame in giving up." She did not respond, so he continued speaking. "As I said before we started, it is physically impossible for you to succeed at your current level. You just don't posses the chakra capacity. You can always practice later."

"I will not…give up…" She said. He sighed. She was as stubborn as her brother. If Hinata kept struggling, she would surely end up hurting herself in the process, if not die from lack of chakra. If she really wanted to summon that badly…

"Can you get up?" He asked. She did not bother wasting her breath with an answer, but pulled herself to her feet, shaking with effort. "Good, now remove your jacket." Confusion crossed her face, but she complied anyway. Under it was a tighter, long sleeved black shirt. "Stand perfectly still and focus your chakra." Hinata finally protested.

"But… I don't think that I have any left."

"It does not matter."

"Okay…" She closed her eyes and formed a hand seal, copying Ryu, except standing. Her "flame" burned again, but she ignored it. Hiashi waited. Moments later, a green, ring pattern melted into view on her stomach area, showing through her clothes.

"There's the seal," Hiashi said to himself. Upon closer inspection, he noticed a break in the circle. "It's cracked? When did that happen?" He carefully traced the glowing lines. Hinata giggled under her breath from the sudden contact. Her concentration broke and the seal flickered before fading. "I'm almost done, stand still." The green ring appeared again. He placed his palm over the pattern and released a pulse of chakra. The seal cracked completely and faded away. The sound of something shattering echoed in the back of Hinata's head. The green flame, now unhindered, spread throughout her body in a rush of adrenaline. Her numbness was replaced with blazing emerald chakra. Her eyes snapped open in surprise. The strange chakra was seeping from her skin, forming a protective aura. Ryu shuddered in response to the unsealing.

"_Hikari, what was that?"_ He mentally asked the spirit.

"_It felt like Kuro…or at least her chakra." _Hikari answered. _"It's coming from your sister."_

"_So Kuro is Hinata's past life like you are to me?"_

"_Yeah, something like that."_

Hinata could no longer handle the new chakra's power and blacked out. She came to in an empty white void, confused. In the distance, she could see a massive cage, its door hanging open. Hinata came closer, almost as if attracted. A green figure slowly approached from the cage's depths. It was a tiger. Hinata found herself rooted to the spot. She couldn't move. Correction, she couldn't _run_. The spectral tiger was now inches away from her face, staring. It smiled.

"Long time no see, Hinata." It said. Its voice was almost identical. "Who are you, and how do you know who I am?" Hinata stammered.

"I am Kuro Hyuga, and I have been sealed within that cage since the day after you were born."

Steel stood in front of a two story building, the front windows crammed with strangely crafted weapons. Unlike the glistening store surrounding it, this shop was definitely not new. The paint chipped sign over the rusty-red door declared the business to be "Hei-bai Armory"

"Well, this is it," Steel said to no one in particular. A little bell rang as Steel walked through the doorway. Handmade wooden bins lined the walls, filled to the brim with knives, shuriken, and other small items. The walls themselves were covered in various larger weapons and supplies, in the back was the counter, where he knew to be the shopkeeper stood, polishing an ax. The man was around 40 years old and had dark brown hair wit lighter brown eyes. He was well built and scars crisscrossed his body.

"Hey, you're that Hageta kid, right?" He asked, gingerly placing the ax somewhere under the counter. "Back for more stuff?"

"Yeah, maybe some camping equipment." They might need that for the forest.

"See anything you like?" Steel glanced at the walls before something caught his eye.

"That four man tent!"

"Okay! I'll take it off the wall." He took his time moving around the counter. Steel wondered why the man was walking so slowly, until he noticed his distinctive limping.

"What happened?"

The man stared quizzically.

"What? You mean my leg?" He laughed. "Around 13 years ago while I was still a ninja, I helped to battle the Nine-Tailed Fox when it attacked this village. That monster was taller than the tallest trees, and a whip of its tails could crush mountains or cause tsunamis. I remember that night very clearly. The Fox had me by the leg, but I stabbed it and somehow got free. All I regret is that the Fourth Hokage killed it before I could get serious!"

"That's amazing!"

"Yeah, and I still have the sword I stabbed it with too!

"Telling stories about the good ol' days, huh Old Man?" A girl's voice came from the top of the stairs. Like the shopkeeper, the young teenager had dark brown hair, which she kept in two buns, and lighter brown eyes. Her short bangs partially covered her ninja headband from view. She wore a light pink sleeveless shirt with golden fastens and baggy blue pants. "You should take what he says with a grain of salt. He likes to stretch the truth," She said to Steel, coming down the stairs.

"Just because you think it's not true, doesn't mean it didn't happen!" The man said, forgetting about his customer.

"But I don't just think so, I know so!"

"You wanna say that to my face, brat?" He bellowed, taking a step closer.

"Yeah, I do!" She yelled back.

"Why you little…!" He growled and grabbed her by the shirt collar, hoisting her into the air to eyes level. She seemed unfazed as they stared each other down, the tension building. Steel watched on, confused by what just happened. Were they going to fight? He was starting to get nervous. The shopkeeper seemed even more muscular when compared to the much less bulky girl. Going fist to fist, the man could probably beat the crap out of her. But as sudden as the "fight" started, they burst into laughter.

"_Wait, what just happened?"_ Steel thought to himself. The man gently set the girl on the ground.

I'll handle the customer, Dad." She said to him. "Didn't you have something to do anyway?"

"Alright then. He wanted the tent, and give him half off. Suppliers don't pay full charge here, Tenten!" He limped his way into the backroom. She grabbed a stool and stool on it as she removed the tent from the wall.

"So you're from the Hageta clan, right?" Tenten asked Steel, stepping off.

"Yeah?"

"Is it true about what they say about your blood-line? Can you really turn to metal?"

"Yeah, it's true." There was silence as Tenten fiddled with the cash register. "You wanna see?" Steel asked. She lit up like Christmas lights.

"Really?" Tenten composed herself. "Uh, I mean, if you want to." Steel held out his hand.

"Watch this." He focused, and his hand shifted from dark to metallic in seconds.

"That's so cool!" She said, squeezing his rock solid hand. Steel finished paying. "Wait!" She said before he left. "You're good with weapons, right? Could you test something for me?"

"Sure, what is it?" She rummaged under the counter before coming up with the ax that her father was polishing before. Tenten set it down with a heavy thud.

"This double ax is way too big for me to use properly. I think that you could handle it better."

"But isn't it your dad's?"

"Actually, he was looking for someone to test it for him." Steel picked up the weapon with a giddy smile. He was going to have all sorts of fun with this. Almost exactly after Steel left with his new "toy", the man came back out to the front.

"You know, I think you should definitely get into a relationship with that kid. It would probably save me money on supplies. I would definitely approve of him as a boyfriend," He said to Tenten.

"Shut up, Dad."

"What? I'm just saying that I like him much more than that other boy with the pale eyes and long hair that you hang out with all the time."

She gave a half irritated half embarrassed glance in her father's direction.

"Like I said before, Dad, shut up."

"Kuro? As in Hikari's sister? But she died sixty years ago!" Hinata took a step back, still wary of the spectral being before her. Kuro paused.

"I can tell that you do not believe me. Maybe this will convince you." Kuro's tiger body shifted into a young girl's form. Hinata was now staring at a mirror image of herself, except her "reflection" wore a formal kimono. "This is what I looked like when I was 13…I think." Kuro scratched her head in embarrassment. "Forgive me if my memory is wrong." Hinata stopped retreating.

"You look a lot like me…Lady Kuro," She said, hesitantly using her name. Kuro laughed quietly.

"I think you have that backwards. It is you who looks like me." Her expression hardened. "And the reason for that is, not only are you and Ryuyoshi direct descendants of Hikari and I, but our reincarnations." Hinata was silent, unsure how to react to such news. "I am the spirit of your past," Kuro continued. "The moment the seal that was used to suppress my influence on you was broken, our souls started mixing. We will once again be one person when I completely merge with you. When that happens, you will posses all of my knowledge, memories, and chakra. But until then, I can always lend you my energy."

"So if you give me chakra, I could use the summoning technique?"

"Yes, you should have enough. But I suggest that you return to reality before your brother becomes worried."

"C'mon, wake up already!" Ryu murmured under his breath as he gently shook his knocked out sister. He had stopped meditating as soon as she had collapsed roughly an hour ago. Hiashi had told him to look after her until she was normal again, but that had been a while ago. He laid her back on the ground. Hinata rolled onto her side and mumbled something about "darkness" under her breath. "Geez, what a heavy sleeper."

"_That's pretty hypocritical of you, kid. You could sleep through a small hurricane," _Hikari commented from within his head. Ryu snorted.

"_Oh, who asked you?" _Hinata came to with a groan, her head throbbing.

"Ryu…What happened…?"

"You passed out for about an hour!" Ryu told her, annoyed. Hinata blushed violently.

"I'm sorry…" There was an ashamed look on her face. His anger died down, now replaced with remorse for yelling at her.

"_This is probably what kicking a puppy feels like." _He thought. "…Forget what I said before, okay? We still have the rest of the day for training."

"Can we try the Summoning Jutsu again?" She asked quietly.

"If you want to, but I don't think it's going to work."

"_Why don't you try summoning at the same time together?"_ Kuro suggested to Hinata._ "It could make it easier."_

"_If you think it'll help…" _"Ryu, we should try a double summoning!"

"Let's just get it over with." He said. The twins flipped through the necessary hand signs and slammed their palms on the ground in sync with each other. The two red patterns connected and burst into white smoke. It cleared to reveal… a dragon.

It was only about the size of a house cat, but it was still a success. The two short horns on its head curved backwards. Its scales were an emerald green with darker green markings on its face in the same pattern as Ryu's. Its claws and the spines running down its back were also dark green. The dragon's body was built like a dog's, walking on four legs instead of two. The wings on its back were carefully folded.

"We…we did it!" Hinata said.

"_You should have more confidence in your own abilities." _Kuro said to her. Ryu grinned and picked up the dragon, holding it out in front of him.

"This is so awesome!" He exclaimed. The dragon stared back with its pale green eyes, enjoying the attention. "What's your name?"

"Ryu-Pika!" It answered with the voice of a child.

"How about I call you Pika, little guy?" It suddenly growled and sank its sharp teeth into his finger. "Ow!" Pika escaped from his grasp and into Hinata's arms. The dragon gave him a dirty look. "What was that for?" Hinata stifled a laugh.

"I think Pika is female, Ryu."

"I'm sorry, I didn't know!" Pika turned away from him. "Please forgive me?" He pleaded.

"Pika, my brother did not mean to insult you. Please give him another chance?" She hesitated before flying over to Ryu and licking his bitten finger.

"Does that mean we're friends now?" Ryu asked the dragon. Pika perched on his head and purred like a cat. "I'll take that as a yes." He rubbed the dragon's head. Maybe the Forest of Death would not be as bad as he thought. Not with Pika, anyway.

Around the same time, deep in the Realm of the Summoned, a dragon stirred. But this was not just any dragon. After 60 years of slumber, the Dragon King himself, Ryu-Tenno, was awakened.

"So it appears that the ancient clan of Hyuga requires the help of my kind once again." He shifted his massive silver body, causing his chamber to quake beneath him. "I have not seen the light of day for so long; I fear I may have forgotten what the outside world looks like." A slow smile crept across his scaled muzzle, each of his teeth the size of a grown man's arm. "I should thank this mysterious summoner for giving me this opportunity."


	7. Anko's Test

AN: Ryu walked into an almost empty room, sitting down in front of a simple wooden table. He picked up the papers strewn on the table and straightened them out before staring directly at you, the reader.

"Hello fans of Konoha Chronicles: Sunrise. I bet you're wondering what happened Scorpio-rat, right? You're thinking, 'Hey, Ryu! What are you doing in the author's note section? Why did it take 2-3 MONTHS to update? And why have you decided to shatter the Fourth Wall like a baseball bat taken to my mother's good china set?' Well to answer the first question, Scorpio-rat is too embarassed to show her slow updating face right now, so she gave the job to me to inform you of the situation. Maybe she'll come back later. Next question: Why the slow chapter? Life's a jerk sometimes, let's just say that. Your beloved (hopefully) author was trying not to fail Math and Science during the last six weeks of school so she could be exempt from finals. (Don't worry, she passed highschool Freshman year.) And then there was Pokemon White... That game is addicting! And then she went on a Code: Lyoko binge. (Watch that cartoon online, it's awsome.) And then there was the dreaded writer's block. To make that up to you, Scorpio-rat made this chapter extra long. (7,775 words to be exact!) _And _she decided to edit the other chapters to make them better. Those should be posted after vacation (Disney World, WOOT!). Last question? It's only temporary. And now for Chapter 7." The screen faded to black.

Chapter 7: Anko's Test

It was now the day of the Genin Exam, 5:55 in the morning to be exact, and Squad 21 was once again at the entrance to the Forest of Death…half of the team, anyway.

"Where are they?" Kenji yelled. The sound echoed through the clearing. The endless waiting was slowly grating on her already frazzled nerves. "First Anko-sensei isn't here, and now there's no sign of Ryu!" She exhaled impatiently. "He better not have chickened out and decided not to come."

"I doubt that," Steel replied, not bothering to open his eyes while he was meditating.

"But, you saw how freaked out he was a couple days ago!"

"Since when did Ryu run when things got 'scary'? I can't recall a single time."

"… I guess you're right," She sighed. "I'm just…," She searched for the correct words. "Bothered. And all this sitting around doing nothing isn't helping either."

"Are you sure 'bothered' is the right term? I think you're just nervous about the test and want to get it over with as fast as you can."

"I am not nervous!" Kenji yelled again, startling Suna awake from her nap at her side. Steel smiled, eyes still closed.

"If you're going to deny something, then at least _try_ to cover it up. Your emotions are very easy to read." Kenji blushed and looked away.

"Maybe they wouldn't be if you weren't so perceptive," she grumbled. They slipped into silence. Minutes passed until Suna barked loudly at the shadows of the trees surrounding the clearing. A heartbeat later, Ryu dropped from the tree tops, landing gently on his feet. They waited as Ryu walked over…and smacked into a tree. Kenji rushed over to see what happened while Steel took his time. "Didn't you see that tree?" she asked, helping Ryu up.

"Why is it always the head?" he mumbled as he pulled himself together.

"You just aren't a morning person are you, Ryu?"

"It shouldn't be legal to be up before the Sun." he said, still not completely awake. As Kenji was lecturing him on not being so lazy, Ryu saw a flicker of light from deep within the Forest of Death. He snapped to attention and tackled Kenji to the ground. Steel ducked just as a knife sailed above them and stabbed into a tree's trunk behind. "That was close."

"Scared the crap out of me..." Kenji muttered.

"Hey guys, there's a note attached." Steel said, removing the paper from the knife's handle.

"Let me read it!" Ryu asked.

"Fine then." Steel handed it to him. Ryu stared at the writing for a moment.

"Steel, what does this Kanji mean again?" Steel sighed and took the note back.

"Why don't I just read the whole thing? It says... 'Test starts now.' What's that supposed to mean? None of the gates are unlocked."

"Uh… Steel?" Kenji pointed to the fence. The gates creaked open.

"Well, that's just creepy." They were silent, staring at the open gate leading into the darkness.

"What are we waiting for?" Kenji asked. "Let's go in already!" She laughed nervously.

"Yeah, into the forest." Steel said.

"The dark, monster infested forest." Ryu added. They hardened their resolve and entered the Forest of Death.

"HACHOO!" The sneeze echoed through the circular maze of trees. A startled flock of birds fled from the trees' canopies and took to the sky.

"Ugh… Stupid allergies." The group had been wandering the Forest of Death for hours with no sign of Anko. Steel gave him an exasperated glance.

"We're trying to keep a low profile here, Ryu. Quit being so loud, you'll attract everything dangerous in the woods." Ryu snorted.

"Well, I'll try to turn it down…" Ryu said, voice dripping with sarcasm. "I'm going to look for Sensei again." The blood vessels around his eyes bulged as Byakugan activated.

"So what are we planning to do when we find her anyway?" Kenji asked. Steel shrugged.

"I was thinking we should mock charge her to gauge her abilities, retreat, and form an actual strategy around the info we gain. Then we won't be caught off guard when we go for the necklace."

"I guess that makes sense, but what if"- She was interrupted by Suna's alarmed barking from atop Kenji's head. Ryu's eyes widened.

"Everyone stop!" He said. The team paused on a tree branch.

"What is it?" Steel asked.

"Suna says it's Anko-sensei!"

"They're right. She's…," Ryu adjusted his vision. "About 30 yards away."

"Surround her, but stay hidden." Steel ordered. They took off in different directions.

Anko straightened her trench coat, standing on a on the thick branch of a huge tree. So those kids thought they could sneak up on her?

"I already know you're there, so come on out!" She called. There was no answer. "Fine then, I'll come to you!" She threw a bomb attached to a knife into the nearby undergrowth. A small fire ball erupted, obliterating the bush. When the explosion died down, only Steel remained standing. He was barely singed. "There you are. Where'd the other two brats go?"

"I can handle you by myself." She smiled.

"Come at me then." He charged forward, jumping onto her branch with his fist cocked back.

"Remember, you asked for it!" Steel threw a flurry of punches at Anko, but all were dodged or blocked. His body flickered metal a second before he landed a solid roundhouse kick on her side. Anko was launched into the trunk of another tree and burst into smoke, leaving a damaged log behind. "Just a substitution." He said to no one. Where did she go?

Kenji was crouched below on the ground watching their fight when she heard a much closer voice.

"Surprise." Anko said from behind her. Kenji gasped before springing forward, leaving a smoke bomb in her place. Anko was instantly caught in a smokescreen. "What is she planning?" she pulled out a knife and held it in front of her. Kenji turned to face the black cloud.

"Suna, get in there!" The puppy charged in with a growl and sank her teeth into the teacher's forearm.

"Dang it!" she yelled flailing her bitten arm in an attempt to dislodge Suna.

"Just a few more seconds…" Kenji said. She finished her hand sign sequence. "All-Fours Jutsu!" Her nails grew to one inch claws and blue chakra leaked from her body as she dashed forward with renewed speed. Just as Anko had finally been freed of dog attached to her, Kenji burst through the smoke, catching her in the gut with a tackle. Anko stumbled backward, the wind knocked out of her. Kenji skidded to a halt, making donuts in the dirt.

"I'll admit you caught me off guard." She brought her knife up again. "But now, I'm ready!" Kenji clenched her gloves and metal claws were released. They glinted in the weak sunlight before Kenji blurred into nothing, closing the distance between the two kunoichi in a second with her unseen lunge. Anko's knife parried the slightly curved blades lashing out at an almost invisible pace. A lucky break gave Kenji the opportunity to slash at her opponent's middle, but she only caught fabric as Anko jumped out of reach. Anko's safety lasted about three seconds before she sensed a very large object coming her way. Ryu landed beside her, swinging the much larger guillotine sword Ryutsume horizontally. Realizing he missed, Ryu started to search the area before he noticed the extra weight at the tip of his weapon. She was crouched on the flat of his blade! He growled in outrage. No one put their feet on his sword! He sent a wave of chakra up Ryutsume's handle, disrupting Anko enough to force her off. Ryu sheathed it on his back and drew his smaller katana. She tossed shuriken in his direction, but they were simply deflected by the one-handed sword. Ryu closed the distance and sliced away at Anko to no avail. She was moving around the katana without trouble, even while performing hand signs. She quickly backed off before holding her arms out in front of her. "Striking Shadow Snake Technique!" She echoed. Snakes with coppery scales slithered from her sleeves and through the air towards Ryu. They wrapped around his limbs like chains, binding him to a tree branch in a standing position. He struggled to escape before a snake curled around his neck, hissing in his face with its forked tongue flickering. He froze. "Aw, are you stuck? Are the mean snakes keeping you from moving?" Anko said to him in a mocking tone. She toyed with the knife in her hand. "I hope you can still dodge" She suddenly tossed the sharp weapon with deadly accuracy. In a last ditch effort to live, Ryu tilted his head just enough to the right to avoid the knife. A searing pain cut through his cheek as something warm slid down the left side of his face. "You have guts, Hyuga," Anko said as she walked up to him. She caught the blood trailing down from his cut with her index finger and he shuddered. "But not enough to be a ninja." She licked the blood from her pointer, watching for his reaction. He felt tears building up in his eyes, but he had no idea why he was crying.

"_Hey, kid!" _Hikari yelled to Ryu _"Snap out of it, you're panicking!"_ The cut on his cheek throbbed again and Ryu's body numbed. He was drowsy. _"Crap! That knife was poisoned, wasn't it?"_ Ryu strained against the binding serpents, but his muscles seized up. His limbs were paralyzed. The forest distorted and hazed in front of him. Anko picked up her knife and held it to his neck.

"Look at you, you're helpless." He struggled again, but the snakes felt like shackles and refused to budge. "Don't bother, you'll just hurt yourself."

"Hurt this!" Anko turned around in time to see Steel running at her, his body solid metal and a spiked ball where his right hand should have been. She back flipped out of the way before his mace fist slammed into the ground, making a small crater. He attacked again, forcing her away from Ryu. Kenji came out of the trees next to her restrained team mate.

"Ryu, can you move if I get you out?"

"Kenji?" He slurred "What's going on?" She hacked away at the snakes.

"You're tied up, remember?" The glazed look in his eyes told her otherwise. He probably couldn't recall his last name in this state. His face was flushed and he was shaking. "That's bad, isn't it?" Her rhetorical question was answered with a dopey giggle. "Geez, it's like you're drunk… Ryu, concentrate for me. I need you to try and loosen the snakes' grip, Ok?"

"…" He pulled his mind out of the clouds and closed his eyes. The markings on his face glowed faintly in the darkness as green chakra leaked from his pores. It formed green static that crackled around his body. The snakes hissed and writhed in pain, releasing him to nurse the burns on their hides.

"Uh…that works too." Ryu frowned. Kenji raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong?"

"I… don't feel so good," He mumbled, flushing a deeper red. He collapsed with a groan. Kenji caught Ryu on her back. She could feel the heat rolling off his skin.

"Oh boy…He's going to get worse if he isn't treated soon." Kenji said. "Steel, let's get out of here!" She called out. He paused form his fight to drop a smoke bomb. He followed Kenji away from the battle site.

"The sun's going to set soon. We should set up camp." Steel said. It was roughly six in the evening judging by the light's orange glow. After escaping Anko, they had rested a few hours to help Ryu. Thankfully, Kenji thought to bring the first aid kit with them. Whatever poison he was afflicted with must have been common, because there was a vial of antidote in the kit as well. When Ryu came to, they continued deeper into the forest. Kenji was in the lead checking the woods ahead for hazards. After running into a giant centipede (causing Kenji's insectophobia to come back with a vengeance) and a man-eating tiger or two, Squad 21 was much more cautious. Ryu lagged behind both of his team members, having recovered from his poisoning with only a bandaged cheek and a paler complexion to remind them. They dropped into a clearing near the one river that flowed through the Forest of Death. Steel pitched the tent while Ryu built the fire pit. Kenji was marking a territory around their camp with Suna while gathering more wood. Ryu had insisted on doing it himself, but she forced him to stay. Kenji had claimed that the forest would only get worse at night, and he shouldn't go out alone when he having trouble walking only hours ago. He grumbled about it, but obliged her.

"Why is she treating me like I'm glass or something?" Ryu complained. Steel shrugged.

"Because she cares about you? She really did think you were going to die from poison" He sat beside him as Ryu poked at the rising flames with a stick. "She would barely talk at all when you were unconscious." Stillness enveloped the camp.

"Why?"

"What do you mean?" Steel asked.

"Why does Kenji care?" Ryu elaborated. "She shouldn't, especially considering what I did."

"Quit asking stupid questions, we're your teammates. Better yet, we're your friends! Of course she cares, I care!"

"But what about when I"-

"Ryu, that was five years ago!" Steel interrupted him. "We already forgave you." Steel removed his bandanna, fully showing the large X shaped gouge carved into his forehead. "And I'm the one with the scar." Ryu winced at the sight of it, feeling responsible. "Stop thinking about the past, you can't change it." Kenji reappeared just as Steel retied his bandanna.

"Hey guys, I caught fish!" She paused. "Why's everyone depressed?" After reassuring her they were okay, they cooked the fish on sticks.

"So what did we learn about Anko-sensei?" Steel asked. "We have to make plans for tomorrow."

"She uses snake summoning!" Ryu said around a mouthful of fish. Kenji gave him a glare that obviously screamed "manners" and he made sure to swallow before speaking again. "And poisons. We should assume the snakes are poisonous too."

"She's faster and has better reflexes." Kenji offered. Steel nodded.

"You're both right. At this point, I don't think we could beat her with raw power. We're going to need a plan with multiple layers of deception." They thought in silence. "I got it. Here's what we're going to do…"

By the time all the bugs were worked out of their ploy, the moon had risen. Kenji stood up and stretched.

"I'm gonna call it a night." She walked to the tent.

"Wait!" Ryu stopped her. "We're just going to go to sleep? What if something sneaks up on us?"

"Stop acting like a kid! Nothing's going to happen." Ryu played with his fingers nervously, stopping when he realized what he was doing. Where had he picked up that habit from? He settled with giving her an apprehensive stare from under his bangs.

"Kenji…" Ryu whined. Steel laughed under his breath. She resisted about five seconds before throwing in the towel.

"Fine, we'll do a rotation guard. But you're going first!"

"Why?" He complained.

"Because you sleep the heaviest!" Ryu scowled, but quieted down. He couldn't argue against that logic. "I'm the lightest sleeper, so I'll take the middle shift." She continued. Steel got up.

"I guess that leaves me with the last shift." He said.

"We'll each do three hours, starting at nine. So wake me up at 12, Ryu!" Kenji said. She and Steel walked into the tent, leaving Ryu alone for part of the night. He sneezed again, scaring something in the bushes nearby and causing the plant to shake. Ryu tossed a knife into it. A panicked brown rabbit fled in the opposite direction. He sighed and went to retrieve his weapon. This was going to be a long three hours. The pale half moon gave the forest a blue tint as time slid by. Owls pierced the darkness with their calls and occasionally a wolf howled. His rising paranoia made Ryu check the camp's boundaries more times than necessary, but there was nothing there. Just as he was going to get Kenji, a hand grabbed his shoulder. To his credit Ryu did not scream, but he did end up on the other side of the camp in about two seconds…halfway up a tree. It took Kenji five minutes to get him to come down.

"Sorry about that. I didn't mean to sneak up on you." She said, gently pushing him back to the tent. His vocal chords failed him, so he just nodded numbly. Ryu had not realized just how tired he was until he was in his sleeping bag. He passed out almost immediately after. Ryu wasn't sure if he was dreaming or reliving a memory as an unfamiliar scene formed before him. The vision took place in a strange, open auditorium room with tile floors and metal catwalks lining the walls above. The upper level was sparsely filled with people, a ragtag assortment of young genin and older jounin. He could only see the people out of his limited peripheral sight, so they stayed as fuzzy outlines and colors. The vision did not give him free range to do anything but observe, and it wanted to pay attention to the person in front of him. About seven feet away stood Neji Hyuga. Ryu realized that if this was a memory, it was not his own. A sickly looking chunin stood off to the side. Ryu was given the knowledge that the man's name was Hayate Gekko. Hayate coughed into his fist before speaking.

"Well... Please begin the match!" Match? Was this a fight? Neji's eyes were cold and resentful as he started to talk.

"Before we begin…there's something I have to point out to Lady Hinata." If this was Hinata's memory, was this the Chunin Exam match she lost? Confusion swept over Ryu, but it was not his own. Neji continued. "You're not cut out to be a ninja. Withdraw from the match!" Shock mingled with his foreign emotions, but he had no control and could say or do nothing. "You're all sweetness and light…a peace maker, not a trouble maker. You're easily led, not a leader." Hinata had no response, so Ryu was forced to remain silent. "And you have no self confidence. You've got a world class inferiority complex…so I know you'd have been more comfortable and content staying at the genin level. But applicants for the higher level Chunin Exam must compete as a trio…and you couldn't bear to let Kiba and Shino down. The truth is, your participation has been reluctant from the start, hasn't it?" This seemed to hit a nerve of hers.

"N…No…you're wrong." She said, but it felt to Ryu like he was saying it. "I…I really wanted to change that about myself. So of my own volition, I…" Hinata trailed off. Ryu could almost feel the stares of the onlookers.

"Lady Hinata… you are the sheltered little baby of the head family, aren't you?" Neji asked.

"What?"

"A leopard doesn't change its spots." He stated. What point was he trying to make? "A failure always fails. And a weak personality won't become strong." The words pierced like glass. "It's precisely because of the unchanging nature of humankind that differences between people are born. It's why we've coined terms like 'elite' and 'failure'. It doesn't matter who you are. We're all judged on the basis of our look, our intelligence, our talent, or our personalities…just as we judge others in turn. Yes, it is a form of discrimination. And the factors that it is based on don't change. We have no choice; we must live within the boundaries set for us by the judgment of others. It's as unchangeable as the fact that I'm of the cadet branch of the family…and you are of the main branch." He stared directly into her eyes- or his eyes, in this case. "I've seen through many things with my Byakugan, and so I know… the courage you are displaying is just a bluff! In the truest, deepest part of your heart, you're desperate to run away from here right now."

"N…No… I really want to…" Hinata stammered out before being silenced by Neji's Byakugan activated glare. The ghostly white gaze cut through her as they locked eyes again. Ryu was completely immersed in the memory, feeling every emotion and movement as his own. Crippling fear paralyzed her, and she could only shiver in place until eventually looking away.

"My eyes can't be deceived." Neji said immediately after. Hinata flinched. "Just now, to escape my stare, you averted your own eyes… glancing to the upper left. It signaled your recall of a past experience. One that caused you pain. When you subsequently glanced towards the lower right, it indicated that you were envisioning physical and mental agony. In other words… you recalled your own previous experiences, and based upon those memories… you imagined the outcome of this match. You foresaw your own defeat!" She flinched again, her breathing quickening. But he continued. "Even now, as you bring your arms up in front of your body as if to shield yourself, your body is signaling you desire to raise a wall between us… to create some distance from me. You implore me to come no further, to peer no more deeply into the innermost secrets of your heart… because everything I have said so far has been correct!" Hinata started to hyperventilate. "In addition, the way you're touching your lip…it's another one of those tender, intimate behaviors that express the agitation you feel. It's a defensive reflex. An attempt to ease your own anxieties and doubts." Tears threatened to fall. It was as if he were reading her mind. "It's completely clear… whether you admit to it or not, you are aware… that you can never change yourself!"

"Yes she can!" A voice familiar to both twins yelled at the top of his lungs. The vision finally gave Ryu a clear view of the metal balcony above as Hinata snapped out of her stupor and looked up. Neji calmly turned around. It was Naruto, rage written all over his face. Hinata stared at him. Her thought could clearly be heard by Ryu.

"_Why is he standing up for me?"_ He continued his verbal critique of Neji.

"You can't just decide these things about other people you fool! Show him, Hinata! Beat the crap out of this idiot!" All other emotions faded, leaving only calm.

"Naruto…" She said softly.

"Come on, Hinata. At least talk back to him! Just hearing him pissed me off, and it's you who has to fight him!" Naruto said to her. Neji turned back to the match, but he was surprised that Hinata was no longer trembling.

"So you're not going to withdraw?" Neji asked her. A defiant gaze was his answer. "Then I won't be responsible for what happens here." Hinata closed her eyes for a moment, reminding herself why she signed up for this exam.

"_I don't quit, and I won't run! I never go back on my word. That's… my way of the Ninja!"_ The memory of Naruto's words echoed.

"I don't want to run anymore!" She said as her eyes opened with Byakugan already activated. Hinata got into a fighting stance. "Big brother Neji…let's fight." Neji mirrored her position.

"Okay then…" The two Hyugas were statues, perfectly still as they waited for an intangible signal to start. Their glares tightened for a split second before launching into a series of intricate palm strikes and blocks with no stop in sight. Wherever they touched, a burst of blue chakra was released. The crowd was entranced, cheering whenever a blow got past someone's guard. They backed off temporarily before charging again. A solid strike was landed, echoing through the arena, but it was unclear what happened. The battle froze in place. Seconds later, Hinata's heart throbbed violently in her chest and she coughed up blood. Excruciating pain laced through Ryu as if he had been struck. Neji had completely dodged her attack while simultaneously hitting her in the chest and arm. "So this is the full extent of the main family's power?" He asked her.

"_Not yet…" _She thought. Hinata switched to her other arm and lunged. Neji effortlessly caught her by the wrist with one hand and used two fingers on the other to poke her exposed forearm. He kept a firm grip on her arm as he rolled up her sweatshirt's sleeve, showing her and the crowd the red dots all over her skin. They were chakra burns. She immediately understood what he was doing for the whole match. "It can't be!" Hinata said. "You mean… from the very beginning?"

"Precisely." Neji said. "I've closed your chakra points!" Ryu was amazed. Neji could hit the chakra points while fighting? Neji shoved her to the ground with an open fisted strike. "Lady Hinata, this is the unalterable difference in strength… the distinction that separates the elite from the failures. This is the unchangeable reality." He watched as Hinata struggled to get up, still reeling from the pain. "From the moment you said you wouldn't run, your defeat was inevitable. The only possible outcome was your present despair." She did not respond. "Withdraw!" He suggested with a tone of authority.

"I…" She said. Hinata forced herself to stand, albeit weakly. "…Never…go back…on my word…" Her breathing was labored. "Because that's … my way of the Ninja, too!" She looked at the catwalk. Naruto was staring down at her. Her last comment had caught his attention. _"Good."_ She thought. _"He's still watching me."_

"Come here." Neji ordered. If she wouldn't give in, he was allowed to keep fighting. Her heart throbbed again and blood splattered onto the tiled floor.

"Hang in there, Hinata!" Naruto yelled. She charged again, and the battle resumed.

"_Naruto!"_ she thought. _"I've been watching… I've watched you for years! Why is that? I don't know what it is, but… when I watch you…I feel a wellspring of courage bubbling up inside me. I feel like if I just do my best…then even I… am worth something! That's how I start to feel!"_ Neji blocked her arm thrust and upper-cutted her. She stumbled backwards and coughed up more blood. Hinata shook it off and attacked once more. The inner monologue continued. _"I've been watching you for such a long time… but now, at last… you're watching me!"_ Neji's palm met her chest with a loud thud. Another bolt of pain struck Ryu. There was a spray of blood before she slumped to the ground face first, unmoving.

"Don't you know when to quit?" He asked. "From the start, your attacks have been completely ineffective!" The crowd was stunned to silence. Ryu could only see black, until a voice pierced the darkness. Hayate spoke. "Seeing as the match cannot go on, I"-

"Don't stop it!" Naruto interrupted.

"What are you talking about, you idiot?" Sakura said to him. "She's got nothing left! Can't you see she's already collapsed?" But she was wrong. Everyone on the catwalk was engrossed by what they we witnessing. Neji was dumbfounded as he watched his supposedly unconscious cousin push herself off the ground to stand again. Her body protested, shaking under its own weight.

"_It's because now the person I've admired for so long… is finally watching me, and… in front of him… I can't bear to look uncool!"_ She thought. Neji's Byakugan snapped on with a growl. "Th-This isn't over yet!" She said.

"You're not fooling anyone. I can see with these eyes…It's taking all your strength to stand!" He retorted. "You were burdened from birth with the destiny of the Hyuga Clan's main family. You have hated and punished yourself for your own weakness and frailty… but you can't fight your nature, or change your fate. But you need not suffer anymore. Be at peace!"

"But… you're wrong, Neji… I can see it now, that even more than me… It's you who are torn and suffering, caught between the destinies of the main and cadet branches of our clan!" Neji flinched before becoming enraged. He ran at her with the intent to kill the prone girl.

"Neji, the match is over!" Hayate yelled as he tried to stop him. Literally two steps away from Hinata, Neji was restrained by Hayate, a silver haired man with one eye covered, a muscular man with a bowl cut and thick black eyebrows, and a woman the vision informed him as Kurenai Yuuhi, Hinata's Sensei. The three newcomers had moved from the catwalk to the ground floor faster than the eye could see.

"Enough, Neji!" The man with the bowl cut commanded. "Before this began, you swore you wouldn't drag the issues you have with your family into this."

"Well, why is it that the other jounin are getting involved? Special treatment for the Main branch, eh?" Neji argued with his teacher, Maito Gai. Hinata's heart gave out with a final throb, dropping her to her knees as she hacked up the blood filling her lungs.

"Hinata" Kurenai said, trying to help her. Ryu could hear the thuds of others dropping to the ground floor as she temporarily blacked out.

"Hinata! Hey, are you alright?" Someone said.

"She doesn't look good. Her face is so pale!" Another voice said from farther away. Hinata's sight flickered again, catching a glimpse of Naruto's face before fading.

"Naruto…" Her last thoughts were slow and drawn out. "I… wonder if maybe I… managed to change…just a little bit…" She finally passed out. The vision slipped away into nothing. Ryu was suddenly standing in front of Hikari.

"Alright, what was that about?" Ryu asked. He wasn't going to waste time with formalities. Hikari laughed.

"Skipping straight to business, huh?" The spirit sighed. "I'm going to try to explain in a way you could understand. As you correctly deduced earlier, you saw a part of Hinata's memory."

"Yeah, but how?" Hikari answered with a question.

"Have you ever heard of the twin telepathy phenomenon?"

"Isn't that just superstition?"

"Usually, but sometimes twins can sense each other's feelings and thoughts."

"I get that, but an entire memory? That's not normal."

"Here's the confusing part… It's because you and Hinata, a pair of twins, are reincarnations of me and Kuro, another pair of twins. The natural bond between the two of you is doubled, making it stronger than normal."

"So why am I getting visions just now?"

"Twin telepathy is supposed to be a two-way deal, but Hinata had Kuro suppressed with a seal until just a few days ago. This blocked her memories from getting into your head, but did not stop your memories from getting into hers. You should ask her if she had any strange dreams before now." Ryu was quiet, thinking about what he had witnessed.

"Why didn't she tell me that happened?"

"I'm not trying to be rude, but maybe it was none of your business."

"What do you mean?"

"Maybe the problem that Hinata and Neji had is already resolved. Bringing it up again would just be opening old wounds." A small smile flickered across Hikari's face. "Or maybe she was hiding it so you wouldn't get all angry over it." Ryu growled. "Kind of what you're doing right now. It's amazing how someone just three minutes younger than you still has more tact than you do."

"That doesn't matter!" Ryu said. He was getting annoyed with Hikari's verbal stabs. "Aren't brothers and sisters supposed to tell each other these things?"

"Did you tell Hinata how Steel got that scar on his forehead?"

"…" Both of them knew the answer to that question.

"Don't be a hypocrite, Ryu. It gets us nowhere. Respect your sister's wishes and move on."

"Ryu, get up!" Kenji's voice called out. He woke up in a cold sweat, his chest sore from the recalled pain of a fight he was never in. The sight of being in a tent confused him. Because of Kenji being the one to rouse him, Ryu had expected to be in the monastery where they and Steel lived with Master Saiko. Ryu remembered again that they lived in Konoha now and he was currently in the Forest of Death. Kenji stood over him as he sat up. "It's about time you decided to join us. I was about to check for a pulse!" Kenji laughed at her joke. Ryu got to his feet and exited the tent, almost stumbling in the process. Kenji steadied him. "Are you sure you're okay?" You were talking nonsense in your sleep and now you're all pale."

"It's nothing, just a weird dream." He said. Steel was sitting on a rock, his back to them, watching the sun rise. He already had his equipment on.

"Oh, so he's not dead!" Steel commented without turning around.

"Very funny, Tin Man…" Ryu answered. "Why don't you quit your day job and become a comedian?" They packed up the rest of the camp and carefully put out the fire before deciding which direction to go in.

"We should head northeast!" Kenji suggested after sniffing the air. The boys looked at her.

"How can you tell where Sensei is? I thought the scent was too old for you to follow?" Ryu asked her. A sly smile spread across her face, showing her canine teeth.

"You wouldn't remember, but when we were retreating from our battle with Anko-sensei, Suna marked her with a new technique we learned. Dog pee is much easier to smell, even in a forest."

"Brilliant, now we won't have to waste time searching. Lead the way." Steel said. Squad 21 traveled deeper into the forest until they were roughly 200 feet away from Anko. They set up their plan before splitting into two groups. Anko was standing in a small, circular clearing surrounded by thick foliage. Ryu and Steel were hidden on one side while Kenji and Suna had carefully positioned themselves on the opposite side.

"Ryu, check what she's doing." Steel asked. Ryu's Byakugan activated, letting him see the further off meadow without blowing their cover.

"Sensei's just sitting there." Ryu whispered. "Wait a minute…" He concentrated more to see clearer. "She's eating something!" He growled, annoyed that they weren't being taken seriously.

"Eating?"

"Yeah, and they're dumplings too! Who does she think she is, having a snack during our test?" His stomach groaned. "We didn't even have breakfast…" He complained.

"Focus, Ryu! What else is she doing?"

"Oh yeah, and she's drinking tea. I can't tell what kind it is from here, but…"

"Ryu!" Steel said sharply, keeping his voice low.

"Okay, okay, I'll"- Ryu was interrupted by a strong breeze that shook the trees. A dazed look was on his face. His Byakugan had turned off.

"Uh… Ryu?" Steel asked tentatively. Ryu shook his head to clear it.

"I'm fine." He said. "What I was saying was… was…" He was interrupted again, the same dazed stare plastered on him.

"What happened?"

"…" Ryu didn't dare answer, holding a finger under his nose.

"Hello?" Steel still didn't understand.

"HACHOO!" The sudden outburst broke the morning's silence.

"What was that?" Anko wondered, looking up from her dumplings. Kenji sighed from her hiding spot.

"I can't believe him… Can't they keep quiet?" Kenji whispered. Suna made an exasperated whining sound. Anko turned in the sneeze's direction, but nothing was to be seen. It was strangely quiet. To keep their presence hidden, Steel had wrestled Ryu into a headlock and covered his nose and mouth in complete silence. Ryu struggled, but Steel shushed him. The forest was still.

"Believe it or not, I don't think she heard you." Steel said. He released him. Ryu gasped for breath, his face returning to a normal color. They both tentatively peeked around the trees to see. She was still sitting there, eating as if nothing happened. Or so it seemed.

"Heard what?" Anko asked from right behind them. The boys hastily turned back around and got to their feet. "Wow, do you kids suck at stealth!"

"She used an illusionary clone?" Steel said, surprised. She laughed and stepped closer. They took a step back.

"So, which one of you blew it?" A couple more explosive sneezes came from Ryu before he got it under control, attracting her attention. "Gesundheit." Anko said, laughing again.

"_Dumb pollen…"_ Ryu thought, turning red with embarrassment. He forced himself to ignore her and growled. "I'm tired of hiding, Steel! Let's just get this over with!" He drew Ryutsume one handed and pointed it at Anko. Steel nodded.

"For once I agree with you. We'll stand out ground." For the first time since the test begun, he took the double axe from Tenten off his belt. He tossed it in the air and caught it by the handle. "It's about time he got serious." Steel threw a handful of shuriken and Anko ducked them, biting her thumb and forming hand signs. Ryu dashed towards her just as her palm hit the ground.

"Summoning!" A white cloud of smoke covered her and the surrounding area. There was a loud hissing noise before a large brown snake, about 20 ft long and about as thick as the average school bus burst into view. It lunged at Ryu, but he kept going. Without breaking stride, he shoved the tip of his sword into the dirt, jumped off the handle, and launched himself through the air towards the serpent. His Byakugan snapped on with nothing but adrenaline to fuel it as his palm dug into the snake's snout. A burst of blue chakra was released at impact.

"Gentle Fist!" A shockwave rippled through the beast and it dropped to the ground, twitching. Its whole body was paralyzed. Ryu landed softly on his feet and retrieved his sword. The snake disappeared with another puff of smoke. Steel threw his ax much higher than before, freeing him to use hand signs.

"Metal Style: Metal Fusion!" His skin became a metal coating and he caught the falling axe. It bonded with his arm, giving Steel an axe for a hand. Ryu and Steel attacked in tandem taking turns swinging at Anko. Unfortunately, it seemed to only cause collateral damage. A few trees that were at the wrong place at the wrong time were felled by Steel's missed axe hand strikes, creating quakes when they hit the forest floor. Ryu was carving deep gouges into the landscape with each slash. As they touched down in the clearing again during their chase, Steel's normal hand punched the ground. "Earth Style: Bonds of Stone!" He said. The ground beneath the Special Jounin buckled before chains made from bedrock emerged, wrapping around her body, arms pinned at her sides.

"Now, Kenji!" Ryu yelled. A pair of twisting blue drills came from the bushes and curved in Anko's direction.

"Twin Piercing Fang!" They slowed down just enough to make out two Kenjis reaching for the snake fang necklace. Anko sent a surge of chakra through her muscles, shattering the restraining stone. Both Kenjis' eyes widened as Anko grabbed them by their vest collars and threw them back. On collided with a tree headfirst, dropping to the ground with a whine. She burst into smoke, showing Suna unconscious. The real Kenji hit the ground hard, rolling to a stop. She flipped onto her feet and attacked again. "Piercing Fang!" Kenji's claws just grazed the necklace before she received a kick to the gut. She fell again beside her dog and did not get up.

"Kenji!" Steel yelled as her tried to get to her. Anko intercepted him with ninja wire attached to shuriken. Steel was pinned to a tree, unable to move. Anko teleported behind Ryu and brought a knife to his neck.

"Give up?" She whispered. Fear overtook him, just like last time. He felt like crying again, but Ryu ignored it.

"Not yet…" His voice was shaky, but he relaxed when he saw something out the corner of his eye. "This is far from over." Anko turned around as she heard the sound of wire breaking. A small green dragon had bitten through the wire, freeing Steel. Ryu grinned. "Good job, Pika." Pika copied his smile and gave him thumbs up. Steel took the scroll off his back and unrolled it two feet. Written in ink was a single large kanji. He smeared blood on it and an open violin case appeared with a puff of smoke.

"Is that a… instrument?" Anko asked, not believing what she was seeing.

"Yep." He said casually. His skin returned to normal and the axe was replaced on his waist. He picked up the Violin and positioned the bow on the strings. "I call it… Beethoven." And then he played. The haunting song echoed through the forest, slowly reeling Anko in with each note. The knife dropped from her limp hand as she slipped into a trance. A full minute after the she heard the violin, she collapsed into slumber. "Illusion Melody: Iron Lullaby." Steel breathed the words almost silently as he lowered his bow. Ryu bent down and removed Anko's necklace. He walked over to Steel, forcing down his own excitement. They finally had it! "Here, give the necklace to me. I can tell from that dumb grin on your face that you're about to burst." Steel said. Ryu turned to the only girl on their team.

"Hey, Kenji! Can you believe we"- Kenji was still lying in the dirt. This concerned him. She was only supposed to be pretending to be K.. Suna was pawing at her unmoving body. Ryu kneeled next to her only to hear soft snoring. "She's… sleeping?" He gently shook her. Kenji sat up instantly.

"Huh? What?" She mumbled. Realizing what happened, she blushed. "I dozed off again, didn't I?" Ryu nodded. "Steel, quit playing that violin in front of me! It keeps putting me to sleep." Steel was resealing his instrument when he answered.

"I didn't even place you under the genjutsu." A vein on Kenji's forehead throbbed.

"You know perfectly well that doesn't matter!" She yelled.

"You beat me fair and square, so from now on, you are officially Squad 21!" Anko said enthusiastically, haven been revived from her genjutsu induced nap. "Now give me back my necklace!" She ordered. Steel complied. "Speaking of accessories, just how did you get it so quickly? I was expecting the test to drag out the rest of the day." The genin looked at each other before shrugging.

"I guess it doesn't matter now if we tell you the plan." Steel said. "First off, Ryu and I were never planning on taking the necklace ourselves. It was all an elaborate distraction to cover Kenji."

"So the hiding in the bushed, the sneezes, even the surprise when I used a clone, was all acting?" Anko asked. The amount of effort they put into tricking her was impressive. Ryu scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"Um, actually no, not the- th- HACHOO! Sneezes…" He wiped his nose with his sleeve, embarrassed again. "I guess you could chalk that up as impromptu acting."

"Anyway, after Steel used the Bonds of Stone technique, it was our turn." Kenji added "If Suna and I failed to get the necklace, we were supposed to play dead, signaling Plan B."

"Is Plan B that summoning?" Anko motioned to the dragon hanging off Ryu's shoulder. Pika had managed to remove his bandage and was currently licking the cut on his cheek.

"Yeah, Ryu summoned Pika earlier so you wouldn't see her. She was supposed to help make sure that Steel performed the genjutsu." Anko turned back to Steel.

"A _violin_. Really?" Steel nodded.

"Never underestimate classical music! I developed the Illusionary Melody techniques myself. Not many people expect a violin to be deadly."

"Well, all three of you are definitely much stronger than I thought at first glance…for a few brats." Her eyes hardened."From now until you reach chunin rank, you will be stuck with me. Report to training ground number three tomorrow morning at 9:00 A.M. sharp. If you don't show up, just remember… I know where you live." Ryu shuddered under her gaze. Her tone brightened. "But in the meantime, let's go get lunch, as a team. The Forest is starting to bore me and I'm all out of dumplings."

"Yes, Sensei!" They said together and headed back to Konoha.

* * *

AN: Hey guys, I'm back! And with extra content! Here's Steel's Data.

Name-Steel Hageta  
Rank- genin  
Native Village- Konoha  
Birthday-April 30 ( 13 years old, Tauros)  
likes- silence, weapons, forging weapons, strange foods, teammates, hard work  
dislikes- complainers, slackers, violence, cold  
personality-quiet, intelligent, strong willed, easily embarrased, peaceful  
skills- bloodline:metal style jutsu. martial arts, weapons user, earth and fire style, variety of metal style jutsu.  
height-5'5"  
weight- 130 lbs

You noticed the scenes I mentioned, but didn't show in detail? The Monk Monastery, how Steel got his scar, when Ryu was being treated by Kenji for poison, and the centepede and tiger incidents? If enough people request it in reviews, I might do one-shots describing what happened. For now, it's classified. Oh, and I'm closing the poll. - Scorpio-rat


	8. Darkness

Sorry about the wait (you can blame The Legend of Zelda for that.) and Merry Christmas/ Happy Holidays. Before you start reading, go back to chapters 1-3. I did some editing, especially to the prolouge. This chapter is much shorter than the last one, but it's mostly a bridging chapter anyway. The next one should have more plot action.

Chapter 8: Darkness

Hinata stood perfectly still, hands forming a generic seal used to focus chakra and her eyes closed tight with concentration. Slowly, two elongated green triangles, one above the other and pointed inward, formed on each cheek. Almost hidden underneath her bangs, two outward pointing triangles with a solid circle in the middle also appeared. The markings glowed green before switching to white. Pure black chakra formed a loose aura around Hinata's body. She held the aura effortlessly for a full five minutes before deciding to draw out more chakra. The aura tightened, hugging her figure like a second skin. Her Byakugan flickered on during the power surge and she could almost feel her nails and canine teeth grow pointed. Her senses sharpened and magnified the sounds and scents of both the backyard and the Hyuga clan complex. Snippets of conversations could be heard from inside. A bead of sweat slid down her face. Maintaining a constant flow of chakra was wearing her down. Three minutes passed before her mental restraints failed, releasing too much black energy for Hinata to handle. Her body shivered as more chakra oozed out, thickening the aura as it took the shape of a tiger. Something struck her in the back, disrupting the flow of chakra and knocking her on her face. The aura dissipated and Hinata returned to normal.

"Didn't I tell you not to go to stage three?" A deep, rough voice bellowed from behind her. She rubbed her forehead as she got to her feet. The fall hurt more than the blow that pushed her down.

"I apologize. I l-lost concentration…" A small electric current jolted her. "Ow!"

"Stop stuttering! And look at me when you're talking!" He bellowed again. Hinata turned around to face the nine foot tall dragon with reluctance and cringed. Ryu-Rai was very obviously teed off with her. She could tell by the crackling of lightning between his barbed horns and the fact that his black striped tail was violently whipping from side to side.

"I apologize. I lost concentration," She repeated, careful not to trip over her own words the second time. The crackling noise stopped and she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Try again, and this time, don't screw up." He said. Hinata refocused. This had become a normal occurrence over the past four days, starting when Ryu-Rai was first summoned. It happened the same day she met Kuro.

After Pika had almost literally attached herself to Ryu, Hinata had wanted to attempt a summoning alone. The result had been a dragon the size of an elephant emerging from the smoke. His scales were bright yellow with black stripe patterns, black horns, and black claws. One of his arms was wrapped in bandages and a Leaf headband was tied to his shoulder. A deep growl came from his throat, sounding exactly like rolling thunder. If she wasn't paralyzed with fear, she would have checked the sky for storm clouds. And then he spoke, in a gravelly baritone, "Where am I?" Hinata considered running into the house, but then decided that it would be rude to drag him here with a jutsu and then hide like a coward. So she answered.

"In Konohagakure," She mumbled out, half hoping it didn't catch his attention. But it was in vain, for dragons apparently had excellent hearing and he turned to face her. He brought his head to eye level, only an inch or two away from her face.

"Is that so…Hyuga brat?" He asked. She nodded, almost giving herself whiplash. "And I guess that means that you summoned me." She nodded again. He growled and drew himself to his full height, sitting back on his haunches. "Well that's too bad for you, because I refuse to serve some stupid child, especially one that's weaker than me." Hinata's fear turned into outrage.

"What? But you can't-!"

"I can and I just did." Ryu-Rai interrupted. "If you want my respect, then show me that you deserve it by beating me in a fight."

"I can't do that! You're huge!" She stuttered.

"Size doesn't matter if you have Yin style to even it out." He countered.

"Yin style? What are you talking about?"

"You mean you don't know-?" He abruptly stopped talking and sighed. "I can't believe I have to teach you your own bloodline…" How was he supposed to show her something that should be instinctual? While Ryu-Rai was contemplating, Hinata questioned Kuro on Yin style.

"_Yin style is the manipulation of Yin chakra to use in techniques."_ Kuro said. _"Unlike the other five main chakra affinities, Yin is only half an element. The other half would be Yang, which is what Ryuyoshi and my brother manipulate."_

"_Yes, but how do you use it?"_

"_Yin is connected to feelings, so they can be used to summon it. A strong, negative emotion such as anger and sadness are easiest to rely on, but makes the chakra harder to control. Positive emotions are better in the long run, but for now I think you should dodge." _

"_Wait, dodge what?"_

"_The claws, of course. The dragon is swinging for your head," _Kuro informed her as if she had expected it. Hinata came back to reality with a surprised cry as she ducked under the swipe. Ryu-Rai growled and pounced at her. She rolled to the left, stopping in a crouching position.

"Hold still so I can crush you!" He roared.

"Why are you trying to kill me?" Hinata yelled. He ignored her and discharged a bolt of lightning from his horns to throw at her.

"_He wants to get a rise out of you so you will use Yin chakra,"_ Kuro explained as Hinata dodged the electrical shocks. He chased her around the backyard for a solid ten minutes, Hinata trying and failing to utilize her Yin chakra.

"_It's not working!"_

"_That is probably because you are panicking more than getting angry. It seems that the emotional training your father gave you worked a little too well for you to completely lose control of your feelings."_

"_Then what do I do?"_

"_I do not know. Hope he gets tired from trying to kill you, I guess."_

"_That's not helping at all!" _Just then Hanabi entered the backyard, the noise they were making attracting her attention from schoolwork. Hinata and Ryu-Rai spotted her at the same time and froze in place. Hanabi saw the dragon and turned to Hinata in confusion.

"Big Sister, what are you doing?" Ryu-Rai connected the dots and realized that his summoner and the seven year old were related, giving him a new idea to trigger Hinata's Yin.

"Hanabi, get away from here! It's dangerous!" She yelled, figuring out what he was about to do. But Ryu-Rai had already moved, grabbing and restraining Hanabi with one hand. He turned back to Hinata and grinned insanely.

"Alright brat, since you refuse to fight back, I'll give you two choices- Use the Yin chakra or the girl dies."

"You wouldn't-"

"Would I?" He squeezed a little tighter and Hanabi gasped in pain. An overwhelming surge of hatred washed over Hinata and she blacked out. Her eyes opened to see Kuro again. They stood in a strange black abyss, the only contrast being the white circle they were standing on. An island of light in a sea of shadows.

"It seems that you have a very short fuse when it comes to the safety of others." Kuro said with a sad smile. "Are you sure you want to use anger to control Yin?"

"I…I won't let anyone get hurt because of me." Hinata answered. "Never again." Kuro nodded.

"I understand. Just as long as you realize what you are getting into." Kuro changed into the form of the black tiger and started to walk away, the shadows parting to form a path of white. As soon as she left the island, the black sea separated them as it reclaimed the path. Hinata watched almost helplessly as the shadows started to creep onto the white remaining, getting closer to her feet until it touched her. The darkness burned and froze her at the same time as it changed every part of her it came in contact with to black. It continued climbing farther upward until it reached her neck as it tried to drown her like rising water.

"Kuro, make it stop! It hurts!" She yelled to the retreating figure. She looked back one more time.

"This is your power now, and you must figure out how to control it. I am…sorry." Kuro disappeared just as the shadows completely smothered her. She screamed. In the backyard, her body shuddered violently as she came to, the burning chakra following her from her nightmare. Hinata dropped onto all fours, pure rage hitting her like a tidal wave. Her nails grew longer and her canines felt pointed. Her face burned as markings appeared. Ryu-Rai watched, spellbound as the chakra scorched the grass beneath her, sending out waves of malice. His own emotions were amplified as he was suddenly aware of his heart racing with fear, something he hadn't felt in years. If he didn't know that Yin chakra had the effect of making one's feelings stronger than they actually were, he would have dropped the girl and ran. The black energy surrounded her, forming a tiger's shape. Hinata stumbled to her feet as the Yin settled in place. Her eyes opened to meet the dragon, boring into him with unsettling white irises and pupils.

"Put her down." She said through clenched teeth. He grinned again before answering.

"No." Her chakra cloak flared before she disappeared from his view. A second later, he felt excruciating pain as something hard collided with his stomach. Another second later, he found himself lying against an oak tree after being thrown through the now fallen pine in front of him. He was now thirty feet away from where he was previously standing. After checking that his ribs were still in tact Ryu-Rai slowly stood up, leaving an indent in the shape of his back in the bark. Hinata was still glaring at him from a distance, this time on all fours. Hanabi was running to the house, having apparently been rescued while he was stunned. Not that having a hostage mattered anymore as his summoner was already trying to kill him. But he still couldn't tell if she was really in control or not, so he had to bait her again. "You hit pretty hard…for a girl." He said as he wiped the blood from his mouth. She lunged again with the same speed, but this time it was expected. Ryu-Rai countered by slapping her aside with his tail. Hinata landed on her feet and darted forward again. He quickly flapped his wings and took off, flying towards the deeper woods. She growled loudly and the cloak thickened, completely enraged and growing more feral by the minute at the sight of him retreating.

Hinata followed him on the ground, tearing a new path through the forest. He looked down from overhead and could literally see a trail of fallen trees below. "Okay, now this is getting ridiculous. I should just end this now before people start investigating." He dropped lower, almost skimming the treetops as he circled around her rough position. He heard an earsplitting tiger's roar, scaring the local wildlife into vacating the area. Hinata scaled the tree closest to Ryu-Rai and threw herself at him from the top. He built up electricity in his horns before forming a handsign and discharging it through his body as she touched him. "Lightning style: Wave of Disruption Technique!" Her body convulsed as she was electrocuted before the dark chakra dissipated and her body returned to normal. He ended the jutsu and caught Hinata as she fell back to the ground. Ryu-Rai adjusted his course and flew back to the Hyuga compound. "Maybe you aren't so pathetic after all," He said to the sleeping girl. She gave no response other than mumbling something incoherent. The dragon smiled. "I've decided then. I'll teach you how to use Yin correctly and then we'll have another fight that's not so one sided." He took her silence for agreement and gently placed her on the grass. Being a teacher wouldn't be so bad. Considering how long it took her to completely snap an attack him, this was going to be cake. How hard could it be?

When Ryu-Rai returned to the backyard, Hiashi met him and agreed to let the dragon mentor his daughter as long as there were no more outbursts of Yin to worry about. At the same time the Yin incident greatly worried the Hyuga council, prompting them to call a meeting with their leader. The meeting room was deep in the heart of the compound, a circular, candlelit chamber with a circular wooden table in the center to match. Around the table were about fifteen places to sit. The council and Hiashi sat down in tense silence.

"What is it that the council wishes to discuss with me?" Hiashi asked, looking at the youngest council member with expectance. Kagayaku Hyuga had only recently joined the council, but his persuasive abilities and speaking skills quickly earned him the job of voicing the council's opinions in a reasonable manner. But no matter how many ways he thought to word this issue, it still sounded inherently wrong. After a moment's pause, he decided to go ahead and say it anyway. There was still the slim chance of Hiashi allowing him to explain further before completely rejecting their plea.

"Lord Hiashi, after the events of today, we have seen first-hand the extent of the damage caused by irresponsible use of the Yin bloodline limit. Considering your eldest daughter's… passive personality, an incident caused by uncontrollable emotions was highly unexpected. Your son also had an incident of the same nature about five years ago, except with the Yang bloodline limit. However, according to the damage report, twenty monks from the Fire Monastery were injured by him, one child almost dying from the wounds inflicted and now physically scarred for life. I believe he was of the Hageta clan? If Master Saiko were not present at the time, people most likely would have died that night." Hiashi had yet to interrupt him so he let his words sink in before continuing. "Using these two occurrences, the council has decided that for the safety and wellbeing of both the Hyuga Clan and Konohagakure, Ryuyoshi should leave the village and return to training with Master Saiko alone."

So yeah...cliffhanger. The next chapter should give Squad 21 their first C-rank mission (if everything goes according to plan, that is) along with this fanfic's first major villian.


	9. A New Leaf

Author's Note: Yeah, I'm sorry. _Really _sorry. It's been like over a year. Happy New Year by the way. Anyway enjoy the new chapter.

Chapter 9: A New Leaf

The council sat in the dimly lit meeting chamber, waiting in silence for their leader's answer. Hiashi closed his eyes and tried not to overreact over the request. It was a logically sound decision to make, but he just couldn't do it. He could never send his son away again. Not after waiting eight years with Sora for him to return, and another five years alone after her death. And he certainly couldn't do it after seeing Ryūyoshi in person. No, he would stay here regardless of the consequences. But how would he convince the rest of the clan? He took a slow breath before opening his eyes again. The council members looked calm on the surface, but Hiashi could read the apprehension in their eyes, Kagayaku in particular seeming almost afraid. He decided to speak.

'I understand your reasoning, but…" He paused before continuing. "I cannot fulfill such a request. I refuse to banish my own son over past mistakes and future paranoia." A council member stood up, outraged by Hiashi's dismissal.

"How could you let a potentially unstable child live freely in Konoha? What if there is another incident, here within the compound? With so many people in one area, there would be many casualties!" Hiashi stood up as well, directing a glare and the smallest hint of bloodlust at his opponent.

"He is no more dangerous than the Jinchuriki boy!" He shouted, silencing the man. "Five years," he said, his voice quieter yet still hard. "That was five years ago, and yet you still refuse to see him as he is now. Ryūyoshi is older and more mature than before, and I believe the past will not repeat itself."

"And what if you are wrong, Hiashi?" Moeru Hyuga was still kneeling on the

floor when he spoke, but he didn't need to stand for his son to stop and listen to him. The two had often butted heads, ever since Hiashi had taken Moeru's place as Clan Head. "What if he slips up and people die because of it? What will you do then?" He questioned. Hiashi paused before looking his father directly in the eyes and answering.

"If something does happen, I swear upon my position as leader that I _will_ be held responsible."Hiashi and Moeru continued their staring contest until the older man closed his eyes and bowed his head, defeated. Hiashi allowed himself the satisfaction of having finally gaining some dominance over the council before addressing them again. "Since the matter is now settled, I believe we have nothing less to discuss. This meeting is over." Hiashi watched as they filed out, talking amongst themselves. He made sure to wait until they completely left the meeting chamber to go to his study. After making such large claims, he needed a way to secure them. He took out a blank scroll and wrote a short letter before sealing it closed. Hiashi attached the scroll to the leg of his personal messenger hawk, letting it fly out his open window. Hiashi observed the hawk as it flew to Konoha's mail center. All he could do now was wait and see if Saiko could do as he asked.

* * *

In present time, Ryu sat in the booth circling his team's table at the Korean BBQ restaurant they were currently eating at. Almost eating at, anyway. Kenji had yet to sit down with them as she was still arguing with the hostess about letting Suna in, and both he and Steel knew that Kenji went nowhere without her dog. And so the rest of Squad 21 was waiting at the table with nothing to do but people watch, which wasn't necessarily a bad thing. The Shushuya was apparently very popular with both the civilian and ninja crowds, and he could spot various interesting people with Leaf headbands on their body somewhere. A few tables ahead were a group of chunin having a loud conversation over their grill. The bar was seating two scarred shinobi he assumed were jonin having sake shots. And right across from Ryu's table sat another jonin sensei and genin team. The jonin looked tall even while sitting, and had a black beard going all the way up to his short cropped hair. He had a lit cigarette in his mouth. The man was talking to a rather lethargic looking boy seated beside him. The boy's hair was tied in the back, sticking up to make his head look like a pineapple. His headband was pinned to the sleeve of his short jacket. The chubby brown haired boy next to him must have been an Akimichi judging by his body size and the serious way he was staring at the meat cooking on the grill. His headband was tied like a bandana, leaving two tufts of hair sticking out and his cheeks had two red spiral tattoos. The girl of the group, the one who was guarding their lunch from the Akimichi, had long blonde hair and light blue eyes. She wore a dark purple tank top and skirt, wearing her headband on her hips like a loose belt.

"I can't believe the nerve of that woman!" Ryu looked up from his observations to catch Kenji walking towards him, Suna sitting on her shoulder. Ryu scooted over and she flopped into her seat, huffing dramatically. "The hostess was new and apparently thought 'pets' weren't allowed or something. I had to pull out Suna's ID to prove she was a service dog. And then she had to make a huge freaking deal out of it by calling the manager! Why must people be so ignorant?" Kenji finished her rant and calmed down, leaning back on the booth.

"So are we allowed to order now, or what?" Steel asked, not addressing anyone in particular. Ryu suspected he had only asked to further push Kenji's buttons, as she immediately flared back up.

"Is food all you care about, Kotetsu?" Anko looked up from her menu after hearing Kenji say an unfamiliar name. Ryu sank a little lower in his seat. Kenji only called Steel Kotetsu, his actual birth name, when she was angry with him. And the only separating the two of them was Ryu. Steel paused, as if he was really thinking over her question.

"For the moment, yes," He answered flatly, but his eyes looked almost taunting. She growled and put a hand on the table, like she was going to stand up. But before things really escalated, the waiter came. Ryu could have sworn that Anko looked almost disappointed in the lack of a fight before ordering the food. Ten or so minutes later, they were cooking beef on the table, Suna situated under the table as she waited for scraps.

"Alright guys, listen up!" Anko started once the food was done grilling. "Remember when I said we would be training tomorrow?" They nodded. "We'll actually be training in between missions, but I'm not going to lie and say they're important ones. They'll be D-ranks." There was a collective groan heard around the table as the thought of house chores and unskilled laboring every day sank in.

"But when do we get to do the cool stuff, Sensei?" Ryu asked.

"Yeah, aren't D-ranks used to build teamwork anyway? We don't need that sort of training," Kenji continued, agreeing.

"Fresh genin teams usually do about three months of D-rank missions before being given a C-rank, but after what just happened recently…You three heard about Sound and Sand Invasion during the last Chunin Exams, right? Well, the Leaf Village lost a decent mount of Chunin and Jonin"-

"Causing lower ranked ninja to take higher ranked missions," Steel interrupted. Anko smirked. "Yeah, pretty much that. Experienced genin can now be sent on B-rank missions as well as their normal C and D-rank if they have the right skills and there are no available chunin to fill the gap. This leaves fresher genin with more C-rank opportunities. You'll probably have to do only one month of D-ranks, tops."

"Alright!" Ryu bounced in his seat with excitement. Kenji laughed and pushed him back into his spot. Anko observed with a small smile. It was hard for her to believe that these were the same kids she fought earlier as she watched Steel and Ryu start a contest over who could handle the most hot sauce on their food. And it was obviously not the Hyuga, she concluded as he struggled to get to a glass of water before his face turned any redder from the spice, Byakugan half on. Kenji had decided that their game was childish and opted to sneak meat to Suna instead. Anko's smile turned into a grin. She was definitely going to brag to Kurenai about her team later.

* * *

Ryu walked back from the BBQ restaurant alone. After lunch, Anko told them what training ground to meet at and what time before dismissing them. Kenji parted ways, saying that she wanted to show her parents that she passed and "rub it in Kiba's face," to use her exact words. Ryu felt sorry for him. Steel also left, leaving himself to navigate Konoha's afternoon traffic. He was slowly getting used to the huge amount of people living in the village. The trading town his team grew up in was nowhere near the sheer size of the Leaf. The crowd tapered off as he turned into the residential district. Two Cadet Branch members stood guard in front of the Hyuga Clan compound, nodding respectfully at him as he passed between them. Inside was almost entirely different. People gave him nervous glances before looking away. Ryu raised an eyebrow. Just what had happened in the three days he was gone? He walked the silent halls to his bedroom, noticing more frightened stares along the way. It was like they thought he was a bomb, ready to go off at the slightest provocation. Ryu entered his room, dropped his supplies, and was about to go look for Hinata before he realized how incredibly dirty he was from the test. Master Saiko had imparted some form of dress code on him, but never really told him when to follow it. Ryu guessed that since he was now part of the Hyuga Clan, he needed to at least try. As he searched for clothes that weren't dirt stained, torn, and spotted with his own blood, he caught sight of something in the backyard. Something big with yellow and black scales. He rushed to pull on his clothes before going to the window. Sitting outside was a huge dragon lounging on the grass as it watched his twin sister. Hinata was meditating while strange yet familiar black chakra wrapped around her.

_"It's Yin chakra."_ Hikari informed him. _"Pretty much the opposite of ours. And it's familiar because I've seen it in action more times than someone should have to. Trust me kid, it's not happy."_ An image of a clearing burning in dark flames surrounding a chakra tiger flashed in his head. The figure inside the tiger was a girl, right around his age. Ryu fumbled with the window latch before throwing it open and jumping out. The dragon's ear twitched at the sound of his frantic approach. Rai turned his head to face Ryu with slight interest as he grabbed her by the shoulder and roughly shook her. The chakra stung his hands as if he had stuck them in a fire, but his own Yang chakra countered the burning effect.

"Hinata, what are you doing?" The Yin chakra dissipated as she lost her focus.

"Ryu?" She blinked as his face came into focus. She looked surprised to see him. "What happened to you? Did you get hurt?" He fingered the bandage still on his cheek absentmindedly.

"I got cut with a poisoned knife, but it's fine now," He dismissed. "More importantly, why were you doing…whatever that was? And who's this guy?" He gestured to Rai. The dragon huffed indignantly at Ryu's disrespect.

"I'll have you know that 'this guy'," He made air quotes with his clawed fingers as he ranted. "Has a name, you punk!" The dragon stood from his sitting position. "I am Ryu-Rai, second son of Ryu-Tenno, the Dragon King!" Ryu snorted, unimpressed. Rai's horns crackled with electricity as he snarled. "Why you little-!"

"Rai is teaching me how to use Yin chakra correctly. Isn't that nice of him, brother?" Hinata interrupted with a nervous smile. She had learned over the past few days that Rai's ego was rather fragile when it came to being important in other people's eyes. The dragon visibly relaxed after hearing the compliment.

_"The Yin chakra did seem very controlled. And in only three days of training too…"_ Hikari remarked.

"Fine," Ryu said. He would be polite to the dragon for now, if only for Hinata's sake. "Thank you for teaching my sister," He forced out. Rai was surprised before his expression changed to a smug grin.

"Of course I taught her. It would be a tragedy to let such a powerful blood line go to waste." He paused, hesitating. "If you wish, you may assist me." The dragon looked away, embarrassed. "I mean, your Yang chakra will make it easier to move on to the next step of training." Ryu thought about it. It had been a while since his own training with his other chakra, and he had grown almost afraid of it ever since he had hurt Steel. He had stopped using it entirely after that until just recently. And even when fighting Kisame and Anko, he used the chakra in very small amounts. Ryu glanced at Hinata, almost instantly regretting it. Either subconsciously or on purpose, she was badly trying to cover up her excitement, as if the very thought of someone training with her voluntarily was amazing or something. Ryu sighed in defeat. "Alright, I'll help." He was startled when Hinata made an audible cheering sound, but she seemed to catch herself and blush. Rai laughed as Ryu found himself smiling, the annoyance over his weird treatment at home fading. He didn't regret his decision if his sister was happy.

_"That was…incredibly sappy. I'm disgusted."_

"_Yeah, I know…"_ Ryu thought back.

_"It reminds me of the better times I had with Kuro."_ Hikari sounded almost fond as he spoke.

_"It's a miracle! You actually sounded like a nice guy for a second instead of a hardened old man." _Hikari grunted dismissively.

_"Shut up before I go back to being cynical, you weak excuse for a descendant."_

* * *

"So they finally assigned you a group of genin, huh?" Kurenai Yuhi sat across from Anko, a round table between them. They were outside a tea shop, catching up on what the other had been doing the past few weeks.

"Yep! I got tired of always hearing about your precious brats, so I applied for a team right before the Chunin Exams." Anko slid a set of files across the table to Kurenai and sat back in her chair, grinning. Kurenai leafed through the papers.

"I still can't believe they actually gave you a team. I mean…not that you didn't deserve one, but…"

"I know what you're saying, with my history and everything," Anko became slightly less enthusiastic at the thought of her past. "It turns out that the Third Hokage himself approved me right before he…" Anko trailed off. The table grew somber, remembering the still recent death of Hiruzen Sarutobi. The event had hurt Anko even more so than it did Kurenai, and she hated to see her friend so uncharacteristically down.

"It shows that he really trusted you, even after Orochimaru left," Kurenai said. Anko smiled, more genuine than usual.

"Yeah…he always did." They lapsed into silence as Kurenai continued reading the files.

"It looks like another tracking and retrieval team."

"Now you little squad has direct competition," Anko remarked, returning to her more cheerful attitude. "You getting nervous, Yuhi?" Kurenai laughed.

"No, actually I'm relieved. We've been getting missions one after another ever since Kiba and Akamaru got out of the hospital. Our squad needs a break." She looked thoughtful. "Though it is interesting how two thirds of your squad is closely related to mine."

"It's probably because of your team's success. It makes sense to put similar genin together and try to make another good unit. Konoha does need more trackers and sensors."

"I was thinking…"

"Hm?"

"Maybe once your team gets used to missions, we could have a joint training session. I'm sure my students would enjoy helping yours out." Kurenai offered.

"You know, it's crazy how much you've changed since you became a full jonin." Anko said rather suddenly. Kurenai looked skeptical.

"What do you mean?"

"About six months ago, you didn't even like kids. But now, you talk about your genin like they're your own children." Anko explained.

"Well…I got attached to them."She looked down into her tea, smiling to herself. "You will too if they're anything like mine, I promise."

"Then I guess I will take you up on that offer." Kurenai suddenly remembered something.

"Anko, weren't you going to tell me how they passed your survival exam?"

"Oh yeah," Anko snorted at the memory of the earlier fights. "It involved a violin and a dragon…"

* * *

"Have you located the target?" A tinny voice crackled over the radio headset. Ryu adjusted the frequency before holding down a button close to his ear to answer.

"Not at the moment." A flash of red caught his eye before it darted into an alley. "Hold on!" He activated his Byakugan, getting a full glimpse of his quarry. "I think I caught him. He's hiding in an alleyway near a butcher's shop." Another voice, higher pitched than the first one, came over the headset.

"Give me a minute to find you. Well be there soon." The deeper voice spoke again.

"Keep an eye on him until he's surrounded, but don't engage the target." The radio went silent. Ryu carefully worked his way through the crowded street over to the alley, earning some weird looks from the civilians. It was slightly embarrassing being stared at as he trying to be stealthy. He probably looked like an actor from one of those cheesy spy movies. Ryu ignored them for the moment for the moment, keeping his back to the wall as he came closer. When he was at the corner, he peeked around it. Something was rummaging in the garbage bin. Ryu turned on the radio again.

"Target still in place. He's in the blue garbage container."

"We're on the rooftops above you, in position," The second voice said. "Steel is in the adjacent alleyway, on the other side of the fence."

"Permission to engage target, Sensei?" Ryu asked. A third voice came on.

"Permission granted."

"I'm moving in three…two…one…," Kenji counted down. A knife fell from the roof, making a loud sound as it hit the dumpster. There was a hiss as an orange cat with a red ribbon for a collar emerged from the container. It jumped to the ground and bolted for the main street. "Ryu, it's heading in your direction!" He moved from behind the corner, placing himself in front of the cat. It hissed again, but stood its ground, puffing up to twice its size. He could see very clearly now why the Hokage said this genin found this mission hard for a D rank. That thing was intimidating!

"Uh… I might need backup over here." His voice shook a bit as the cat approached. Kenji dropped from the roof, landing beside him. Suna jumped off her perch on her shoulder and barked at the cat. It took a swipe at the dog with its claws. Kenji growled in retaliation, a sound that even scared people sometimes. The cat quickly turned and fled in the opposite direction. "Steel, it's going over the fence!" Ryu said over the radio.

"I got it." He answered just as the cat leaped over. There was an angry yowl heard before a bout of silence. The radio clicked on again. "Target captured. I am waiting for containment device." Ryu let out a sigh and Kenji relaxed her tense body.

"See? I told you, it's just a dumb cat. No big deal," Kenji said. The team regrouped behind the fence, greeted by the sight of a frantic cat clawing away at Steel's arms. It was completely ineffective of course, because the attack was deflected by a protective layer of metal. Steel smirked as the feline uselessly struggled in his grip.

"Sorry cat, but it's over."

"Good job guys, you caught the Fire Daimyo's pet cat." Anko said, placing a carrying case on the ground. Steel got it inside, locking the door before it could escape again. Kenji picked up the cage, looking inside with distrust.

"Ugh. I hate cats." Anko laughed.

"Don't you think that's sort of stereotypical of your clan?"

"Nah, she has a personal vendetta against them." Steel said as the metal faded from his skin.

"Cats are too finicky," Kenji said. "You can't predict what they're going to do. And they smell bad." She added, crinkling her nose and turning away a bit. She handed the cage to Ryu. "Why don't you hold it? You like cats, right?" Ryu struggled under the weight of the oversized carrier before he managed to balance it in his arms, blocking his face from view.

"I like _normal_ cats, not demons disguised as cats!" He corrected her. "This one is bloodthirsty or something. And why is this carrier so big anyway?"Anko rubbed the back of her head.

"Well, the owners are a bit over the top when it comes to…everything."

"Oh, my dear Tiger!" The Daimyo's wife exclaimed when they walked into the Hokage's office, snatching up the carrier from a surprised Ryu. She took the cat out and hugged it to death. "You've been returned to me, safe and sound!" The Hokage watched as she rambled on and squeezed Tiger into submission, mildly amused.

"I told you they were over the top." Anko said.

"Are you enjoying this, Kenji?" Ryu whispered. She had a rather sadistic smile as she watched Tiger suffer.

"Yes, yes I am." Steel only shook his head in mock disappointment. The woman returned her attention to the genin.

"Thank you so much for finding my precious Tiger!" She said before paying and leaving the room.

"Another completed mission for Squad 21," Tsunade said, marking a paper. "You three have done quite a few D ranks in the last few weeks." She paused. The genin drew an anticipating breath. Were they finally going to get a higher ranked mission? Even Anko looked interested in not supervising menial chores. "So I'm making you do another week of them!" The entire squad groaned. She laughed at their disappointment. "I'm just messing around! I do have a C rank mission for you."

"Lady Tsunade, that was mean!" Shizune scolded.

"I have to entertain myself somehow." She calmed down again. "Anyway, it's a combination escort and retrieval mission. You will guide the client back to his hometown and help him search for a lost object. I'll call him in to explain further. Send in Mr. Tsubasa!" She told the shinobi standing guard at the doorway. The chunin left for a minute, returning with an older man. The man looked completely normal, with short brown hair, brown eyes, and a shaved beard. His clothing was simple, something a farmer would wear. He had a rice picker's straw hat hanging from his shoulders and wore a cheap looking pair of sandals. He seemed to be in his forties. The only thing out of place on him was the full sized katana hanging off his belt.

"Mr. Tsubasa is too formal, you may call me Fukutsu," He said, giving a short bow to the group of genin.

AN: Maybe I post an image for this story...


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